Charlie Sheen, who likes to say, “I’m an F-18, bro,” was moving at a decidedly subsonic speed Tuesday evening as he motored to Washington from Dulles International Airport. Still, 80 mph in a sport-utility vehicle is pretty fast.
At the time, Sheen was running nearly an hour late for his stage show, “Violent Torpedo of Truth: Defeat Is Not an Option,” at DAR Constitution Hall.
But you might wonder: Who authorized the D.C. police escort — at least two marked cars with emergency lights blazing — that helped the fired sitcom star and his entourage hurry into the District?
How important or famous must one be — how much tiger blood and Adonis DNA must one possess — to rate a police motorcade in the nation’s capital?
How is such a thing arranged? And what does it cost?
You’ll have to wonder awhile longer: As of Thursday, 48 hours after Sheen had come and gone, no one in his camp or the police department would publicly explain the deployment of law enforcement resources.
“Citizens of the District don’t want to see their police force used to escort private citizens and that Charlie Sheen, of all people, is getting a personal escort,” said D.C. Council member Phil Mendelson (D-At Large), chairman of the committee that oversees police.
Police Chief Cathy L. Lanier did not reply to e-mailed questions. Sheen’s publicist and tour promoter said they had no answers. And a spokeswoman for Constitution Hall said the venerable venue had nothing to do with the actor’s commute.
“This entire matter is under investigation,” D.C. police spokeswoman Gwendolyn Crump said Thursday, declining to answer questions about the escort.
Such a murky affair. Try to follow along. . . .
Although the D.C. police Web site describes how the department deals with visiting dignitaries, nothing could be found on it explaining how, say, a Hollywood celebrity running late for a stage gig can arrange a high-speed motor escort.
“From what I know right now, I have asked internal affairs to investigate,” Lanier told reporter Paul Wagner of WTTG-TV (Channel 5) outside the city’s John A. Wilson Building. “Because, from what the allegation is, it is not something that’s authorized by the Metropolitan Police Department.”
The department provides police escorts in “limited circumstances . . . based on security needs, and there are protocols to be followed,” the chief said. “We don’t do escorts for celebrities.”
The department’s special events branch works on “planning, developing and executing escort and security support,” but only for “distinguished guests of the federal and municipal governments,” the site says.
The phone in the special events branch rang and rang Thursday. No one answered, and there was no voice mail. The branch is part of the police homeland security bureau, which is commanded by Assistant Chief Lamar Greene.
Greene said Thursday that he had not personally looked into the Sheen matter. “I know, of course, there’s a lot of inquiries floating around about it,” he said, adding that the department “has put together a fact sheet that will pretty much answer any- and everything you guys need to know.”
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