ALBANY, N.Y. – One of Sen. Hillary Clinton's Republican rivals suspended her campaign "until further notice" Monday following her teenage daughter's arrest on a shoplifting charge.
Kathleen Troia "KT" McFarland, who has been in a bitter primary fight against former Yonkers mayor John Spencer, has canceled her upcoming events with barely three weeks left before the Sept. 12 election, her spokesman William O'Reilly said.
"This past Saturday, my 16-year-old daughter, Camilla, was caught shoplifting from two stores in Suffolk County," McFarland said in a statement. Her daughter will not contest the charges, two counts each of petty theft and possession of stolen goods, McFarland said.
"My husband Alan and I are deeply alarmed by this incident and will be spending every waking hour in the coming days dealing head-on with the repercussions of her actions," she said. "I will resume active campaigning only when I am certain that my daughter is OK and getting the help she needs."
McFarland said Camilla is "a bright and wonderful child" who "has made a serious mistake."
"No one is above the law," she added.
McFarland, a former Pentagon official under President Reagan, and Spencer, the party's designee, both trail Clinton substantially in polls and fundraising.
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