Virginia Mayor charged with ‘dealing meth in exchange for sex’ opens up about drug addiction
The former Mayor of Fairfax City in Virginia has opened up about the crystal meth sex scandal that “ruined his life”.
Scott Silverthorne was in his third term as Mayor of the city and was well liked.
However, last year his career came to an end after he was “charged” with dealing meth in exchange for group sex.
The politician has since opened up about the scandal, which he claims the media “got wrong” in a revealing interview.
In actual fact, there was no sex charge that the former Mayor faced.
He explained: “There was no sex charge, and there was no sexual activity during the time of the arrest. Even the prosecution never brought up sex in the courtroom.
“Sex was talked about, but there was no exchange of sex for drugs. No quid pro quo. The story became more about sex because of the way the police wrongly portrayed it. It was greatly embellished.”
Talking to Queerty, Silverthorne explained that he had dealt with a lifelong crystal meth addiction since he was just 14-years-old.
He managed his addiction by limiting his use to once a month, but when he did take the drug he often binged on it for 2 or 3 days at a time.
“Like most addicts, I did not believe I had a problem. I considered my use recreational, but upon reflection, that was an excuse. It was taking over my life,” he explained.
Silverthorne explained that he had worked hard to hide his addiction, and other than a few friends he had in the gay community almost nobody knew the extent of his usage.
At the time of his arrest, Silverthorne was out as a gay man publicly but he believes he faced a lot of stigma from people who claimed he didn’t do “enough” as an LGBT advocate.
Now, Silverthorne has turned his life around and is no longer using crystal meth.
He credits his friends, family and the LGBT community for “urging him to stay strong”.
When it comes Silverthorne’s future, he has been offered book deals and TV opportunities but for now, he wants to stay focused on his career.
He added that his hopes other people dealing with drug addiction can follow his footsteps in getting better.
“I want to be very careful not to preach because only individuals can change their own behaviour. Let’s just say that my example should be a “teachable” moment for others.
“Drug users and drug addicts are fully aware of the risks they are taking, but addiction is hard to beat,” he said.
