Injured N.J. governor counts his blessings

Gov. Jon Corzine, speaking publicly for the first time since he was seriously injured in an automobile crash two weeks ago, said Thursday that he felt blessed.

Sitting in a chair next to his hospital bed, Corzine appeared in good spirits.

“I’m the most blessed person who ever lived,” Corzine said.

Wearing a white Cooper University Hospital polo shirt and red exercise pants, Corzine had no visible scrapes or bruises, though his speaking was a bit labored as he visited with a son and read get-well cards.

His broken left leg was extended on a stool. An IV needle was taped to one hand, but no intravenous lines were attached.

Corzine, 60, was riding in the front passenger seat without a seat belt when his sport utility vehicle, driven by a state trooper at 91 mph, crashed on the Garden State Parkway near Atlantic City. Aides have said he is not likely to resume his duties while in the hospital.

The Democratic governor badly fractured his left thigh and broke 11 ribs, his breastbone, his collarbone and a vertebra. He had three operations, and an inserted metal rod stabilizes his leg. For more than a week, he was on a ventilator and was fed through a tube.

A citizen has filed a complaint against the governor for failing to wear his seat belt at the time of the accident. A judge will review the complaint next week and decide whether to hold a hearing, which could lead to a $46 fine, said Roseanne Lugg, court administrator for Galloway Township, where the April 12 crash occurred.

New Jersey law requires drivers and front-seat passengers to wear seat belts.

The governor has not been cited for failing to buckle up. Police, who have 30 days after an accident to issue a citation, said Thursday that no decision had been made about whether to charge him.