Becki Falwell called 911 after her husband Jerry Falwell Jr hurt himself in a fall when he was intoxicated. There have been a number of stories about Jerry Fawell Jr and in many of them alcohol is often intertwined. This blog post asks the question, is Jerry Falwell Jr have an alcohol abuse disorder?
“There is no difference between knowledge and temperance; for he who knows what is good and embraces it, who knows what is bad and avoids it, is learned and temperate.“
Socrates
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
Galatians 5:22-23 ESV
Jerry Falwell Jr posing with alcohol.
There is an article the other day that I put on my pile of items to explore as the Liberty University scandal drags on. The Huffington Post broke an article
Huffington Post and a Phonecall From the Falwell House
On August 30, 2020 a phone call was placed to 9-1-1 from the Falwell household. Jerry was intoxicated and had injured himself. A lot of blood was gushing from his wound. Becki explained that she was at church at 11:00 pm when she got a phonecall from Jerry Falwell Jr who said that he was bleeding after a fall down the stairs. Becki said that the doors were locked and that she broke down the back one to find Jerry Falwell Jr. Here are the transcripts as piublished in the Huffington Post.
The dispatcher asked whether her husband had been drinking alcohol; Becki Falwell said “yes.” When asked if he had been drinking “heavily,” she said, “I’m not going to answer that question.”
The dispatcher explained that alcohol thins the blood and could account for the excessive bleeding, and restated the question.
“The more I tell you the name, the more you’re going to understand why we’re not talking to you right now,” Becki Falwell said. Dispatch logs, obtained by HuffPost via a public records request, state that “He won’t let her take him to the hospital as he is stubborn. Caller was not forthcoming.”
But medics and emergency responders arrived at the residence later that night. A responder observed lacerations on Jerry Falwell Jr.’s face, including under his left eye, across the bridge of his nose, and above both his right and left eyes. The responder also recorded in a report that Jerry Falwell Jr. said he hit his head on a trash can, and that there was “blood in the area he indicated” as well as “empty alcohol containers.” The officer also noted “Jerry had slurred and slowed speach (sic) and would repeat things already asked.”
You can read the original Huffington Post article in, “911 Call From Intoxicated Jerry Falwell Jr.’s House Last Month Describes ‘A Lot Of Blood’”
There are other articles that have been published about this situation you can read as well. Below you will find a few to read about this situation with Jerry Falwell Jr.
- Religion News Service, “Report: Jerry Falwell injured in fall while drinking according to 911 call.”
- Atlanta Journal-Constitution, “Report: Ex-university president Jerry Falwell Jr. found bleeding, drunk.”
- New York Daily New, “Intoxicated Jerry Falwell Jr. fell down stairs in scene with ‘lot of blood’ amid pool boy sex flap: report.“
- London Independent, “Jerry Falwell Jr’s wife called 911 saying there was ‘lots of blood’ after husband fell while drinking, report claims.”
- Friendly Atheist, “A Drunk Jerry Falwell, Jr. Injured Himself, According to Wife’s Recent 911 Call.”
- Yahoo News, “Jerry Falwell Jr.’s Wife Reportedly Called 911 About ‘A Lot of Blood’ on Husband amid Sex Scandal.“
Indicators of Alcoholism
Alcoholism is a common problem today and its an issue that is genetic. According to the National Institutes of Health 27% of those 18 and older have engaged in binged drinking in the last month. While close to 7% of those 18 and older have engaged in heavy alcoholic drinking the past month. According to the Alcohol Rehab Guide the following are indicators of alcohol abuse.
- Experiencing temporary blackouts or short-term memory loss
- Exhibiting signs of irritability and extreme mood swings
- Making excuses for drinking such as to relax, deal with stress or feel normal
- Choosing drinking over other responsibilities and obligations
- Becoming isolated and distant from friends and family members
- Drinking alone or in secrecy
- Feeling hungover when not drinking
- Changing appearance and group of acquaintances you hang out with
An Observation I Am Seeing and is Jerry Falwell Jr an Alcoholic?
Since the Giancarlo Granda story broke there is something that I am noticing in the articles. This didn’t hit me until this Huffington Post article came out. Almost all the articles make a mention to Jerry Falwell Jr. being intoxicated or his use of alcohol. Politico reported that Jerry Falwell Jr liked to visit clubs in Miami. And the Wall Street Journal reported that Jerry Falwell Jr showed up at work appearing to be drunk or having slurred speech and smelling of alcohol. In many of the articles that discuss Giancarlo Granda how Jerry Falwell Jr was intoxicated with his zipper down when he showed up to have sex with Becki. He recently spoke about Falwell’s alcohol use on Good Morning America recently in, “Giancarlo Granda is Interviewed on Good Morning America and Discusses Jerry Falwell Jr’s Use of Alcohol.”
So the question to be asked is the following. Did Jerry Falwell Jr have an alcohol abuse disorder? Look at those indicators of alcohol abuse up above and then layer this story over them. Jerry Falwell Jr meets some of the stories coming forward. He showed up to work smelling of alcohol. He engaged in risky behavior and embarrassed himself, for example his zipper being down frequently. it appears. It appears he drank in secrecy or in private. And then he had his mood swings. For example he was incredibly aggressive on Twitter in attacking people. Was Jerry Falwell Jr intoxicated when he was on Twitter? So again is Jerry Falwell Jr an alcoholic? Well the evidence is pointing in that direction.
What Would Happen at Liberty if a Student Had Problems With Alcohol?
In asking about Liberty I poked around and asked some questions and the following should also be asked. What would happen if a student at Liberty had a problem with alcohol? This blog above all works at being fair and going where the evidence leads. It really depends who or how a Liberty student would be found to have alcohol problems. If it is reported through a chain of an RA in the Liberty housing what would most likely happen is that he would file a report with the Resident Director of Liberty housing. From there the issue will be referred to the staff of Office of Community Life who will handle the discipline. What this blog believes based off research is that the Office of Community Life will prioritize helping the student with the problem. The goal is restoration and not a blanket expulsion. The student may face a fine or have points added to their record or mandated to go to counseling. But this blog believes that Liberty would do the right thing in the end. Now if there are other stories that dictates otherwise please let me know and this blog would be willing to write about it.
I wouldn’t say alcoholism is “an issue that is genetic”. Better might be to say genetics can be a contributing factor. Environment is also a major contributor.
I’ll also note that fines will affect students differently depending on their economic circumstances. I knew a rich person who didn’t care about parking fines, the amount was pocket change to him which was worth it to park where he wanted. The same fine would have devastated economically a poor person. At a place like Liberty University, fines would mean little to a rich student (unless the fines were like those in Finland and proportional to a person’s income), while a poor student might be forced to leave since they couldn’t pay. I note the university I went to does not use fines though a student could be required pay for damages. More common would be hours of community service and, in some cases, with hours of professional counseling for a suspected problem counting towards the community service (leaving it to the student whether to seek that help or just do the standard type of community service hours).
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Thanks for the comment and welcome. You raise a good point. Fines and penalties can mean many things. But if you are affluent and have deep pockets they probably are just a slap on the wrist nothing more.
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i.e. Money and Influence can buy your way out of anything.
With or without “Touch Not Mine Anointed!” proof texts.
Three things about this incident report:
1) Junior’s “slurring and repeating” and cause of his injuries suggest he was not only “intoxicated”, but “Falling Down Drunk”.
2) Becki had flipped into “Do You KNOW Who I AM?” and “No Comment” damage control mode. Like one of those “Entitled Karen” stories on Reddit.
3) More generally, where you find “Dry” as a (if not The) Litmus Test of Salvation you will find “The Secret Sip”. And such drinking in secret is more likely to lead to serious alcohoilsm, as there is nothing accompanying the alcohol, only the alcohol.
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Does anyone else remember how actor William Holden died back in 1981?
According to Weird Ways to Die, Wikipedia, and various searches, Holden (a serious alcoholic) was at home (alone) falling-down drunk and fell, hitting his head on a table(?) and opening an artery. Too drunk to realize how serious his injury was, he just sat there trying to stop the bleeding with Kleenex, probably going through at least a box of it before he bled out. “Bled out” as in “bled to death”.
When I read the above, I immediately thought of Holden’s death.
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Boldface should have ended after “artery”.
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Alcohol abuse and extreme sexual behavior often go hand in hand. They’re both attempts to cope with pain.
Do not become drunk on wine, for it leads to debauchery.
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People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. I Timothy 6:9
A good name is more desirable than great riches, to be esteemed is better than silver or gold. Proverbs 22:1
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Thanks for your comment Nathaniel!
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Testimony of frequent intoxication, a strange and inappropriate alcohol-related Instagram post, calling a radio station while intoxicated to explain said inappropriate Instagram post, and now an alcohol-related injury occurring among “empty containers [plural] of alcohol”. If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck…
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