Thomas Ravenel (born August 11, 1962) is a politician and former State Treasurer. He is the son of former South Carolina Congressman Arthur Ravenel, Jr.
He currently stars on the Bravo reality series Southern Charm and was an Independent candidate for the United States Senate in the 2014 election in South Carolina. He is also a member of the French Huguenot Church in Charleston.
Video Thomas Ravenel
Background
Prior to running for office, Ravenel founded the Ravenel Development Corporation, a commercial real estate company.
Ravenel ran for the U.S. Senate in 2004, seeking the seat left open when Fritz Hollings retired. He came in third in the Republican primary election. After Ravenel endorsed Republican Jim DeMint, DeMint went on to win the Republican runoff and the general election. Subsequently, Ravenel was fined over $19,000 by the Federal Election Commission for improperly filing the required forms for the election. Ravenel ran for South Carolina Treasurer in 2006, defeating nine-term state treasurer Democrat Grady Patterson in the 2006 general election. Ravenel endorsed Ron Paul in the 2012 Republican primaries.
Ravenel is currently a part of the cast of Bravo's Southern Charm. Ravenel lives at Brookland Plantation, an estate he purchased in 2006.
Maps Thomas Ravenel
Education
Ravenel graduated from The Citadel in Charleston, receiving his B.S. in 1985. He later received his M.B.A. from the University of South Carolina in 1991. His M.B.A. studies were focused on finance and real estate.
Federal drug charges
In June 2007, Ravenel was indicted on federal cocaine distribution charges by US Attorney Reginald Lloyd. The filed charges allege that Ravenel purchased less than 500 grams of cocaine through an intermediary in Charleston, South Carolina, in 2005, prior to his election as treasurer but after his abortive entry in the 2004 Senate race.
Governor Mark Sanford suspended Ravenel from his duties as state treasurer upon learning of the charges, and appointed Columbia attorney Ken Wingate to replace Ravenel on an interim basis. Meanwhile, Ravenel decided to enter a rehabilitation facility, according to prosecutors.
Ravenel had been volunteering for the Rudolph Giuliani presidential campaign, serving as his South Carolina state chairman. Ravenel resigned from that post after the indictment, according to Giuliani campaign officials. The campaign subsequently replaced Ravenel with Barry Winn, who was co-chair of South Carolina finance committee.
On July 24, Ravenel resigned as Treasurer. The South Carolina General Assembly elected state Rep. Converse Chellis to serve out the remainder of his term.
Ravenel underwent a rehabilitation program in Arizona, and then returned to plead guilty to "conspiring to buy and distribute less than 100 grams of cocaine" in September 2007.
Sentencing
On Friday, March 4, 2008, Thomas Ravenel was sentenced to 10 months in federal prison for drug charges against him, but was not immediately ordered to report to begin his sentence.
2014 campaign for U.S. Senate
On Monday, July 14, 2014, Thomas Ravenel submitted more than 17,000 signatures, officially placing him on the ballot as an independent candidate against incumbent Senator Lindsey Graham. He finished in third place, garnering 3.9% of the vote.
Personal life
Ravenel was married to Mary "Katy" Ryan, daughter of the former Chief of Staff of the Air Force General Mike Ryan, for two years. They divorced in 1998. He and his ex girlfriend, Kathryn Dennis, have two children, a girl (Kensington Calhoun) and a boy (Saint Julian).
Sexual assault allegations
In April 2018, Ashley Perkins, a Florida-based real estate agent, claimed that her mother was sexually assaulted by Ravenel after meeting him on Tinder, a dating app, in December 2015. Perkins claims her mother later told her that Ravenel "stuck his penis in her face," and also held her arms back while sticking his fingers inside her vagina and anus. Perkins said she did not witness the assaults, but that her mother seemed "very withdrawn" and finally confided in her. According to Perkins, her mother is unable to publicly discuss the case due to a non-disclosure agreement negotiated by attorney Gloria Allred as part of an alleged $200,000 settlement with Ravenel. However, Perkins, who claims to be a witness to the mediation process between her mother and Ravenel, was not bound to such an agreement and therefore, able to publicly disclose the details of the case.
Ravenel's attorney, Richard P. Terbrusch, denied Perkins' allegations, stating that his "client enjoys a certain degree of fame and unfortunately has become--unfairly--a target for an individual who has, in my opinion, dubious motivations." Bravo and Southern Charm production company, Haymaker, announced on May 4th, 2018 that they were taking the "allegations very seriously" and launching their own investigation into their validity.
In May 2018, a second accuser--Ravenel's children's former nanny, Dawn--came forward with new allegations of sexual assault against Ravenel. "Nanny Dawn" (as she was known to Southern Charm's viewers) claims that in January 2015, Ravenel forcibly raped her after a night out with his friends: "I went upstairs to get my jacket which had the key to my vehicle in the pocket. I was corralled into the master bedroom and he shut the door behind me. I turned around and he had his pants dropped, not wearing underwear," she said. "He was blocking the door. I was mortified, embarrassed, and scared." Charleston police have reportedly opened an investigation into Ravenel into the alleged rape of Dawn after she filed an incident report in early May.
As of May 16th, 2018, neither Ravenel, his attorney, BravoTV, or Haymaker have directly publicly responded to Dawn's claims.
Following a report that more women are expected to come forward with claims of sexual assault against Thomas, the reality star has reportedly hired a crisis manager to help him deal with the backlash he is currently facing.
On June 2, 2018, sources reported that BravoTV has decided Ravenel will not be returning for future seasons of the show. Cast members are under a gag order pending completion of the current season's run, but will be free to speak out about the matter at the 'end of season reunion' show. Ravenel did not attend the show's reunion, but his girlfriend Jacobs did.
References
Source of article : Wikipedia
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