Nancy Kerrigan's Brother, Mark, Back in Jail After Failing Sobriety Test

Nancy Kerrigan's brother, Mark, is back in jail after failing a sobriety test.

As reported by the Boston Herald, a Middlesex Superior Court judge found that Mark Kerrigan had violated the no-alcohol terms of his probation. During a Saturday sobriety test, Kerrigan's levels were reported as .035, .025., .036 and .029 over a period of 30 minutes.

The judge revoked Kerrigan's $25,000 bail and sent him back to jail. Nancy's brother had been confined to his widowed mother's home in Stoneham, Mass., after being charged with manslaughter of his father, Daniel Kerrigan.

Mark's lawyer blames cough syrup for the failed sobriety test.

Figure skater Nancy Kerrigan won an Olympic bronze medal in 1992 and a silver medal in 1994, losing the gold medal by the narrowest of margins to Oksana Baiul. Yet Nancy is most famous (or infamous) for uttering the words "why me?" after being attacked on the knee just before the US National Championships in 1994. The attacks were linked to Tonya Harding's ex-husband.

Although figure-skating is known for its grace and beauty, the sport is hardly free from scandal. It's a bit unfair that Tonya Harding has taken the brunt of criticism over the years; other skaters have had troubles of their own.

During the Tonya/Nancy period, Tonya Harding was vilified as the "bad girl" of figure skating while Nancy Kerrigan enjoyed a sterling reputation. Yet the media finally knocked her off her pedestal after a series of gaffes at the 1994 Olympic medals ceremony and arguing with Mickey Mouse at a Disney parade, leading one Washington Post columnist to suggest that maybe she wasn't such a nice person after all.

In August 2010, former US National Champion Nicole Bobek was sentenced to five years probation for her participation in a New Jersey drug ring. According to the Washington Times, her lawyer defended her by arguing that her disappointing finish at the 1998 Olympics had taken a psychological toll, causing her to fall into the wrong crowds.

On and off competition, figure skating has experienced its share of corruption, the most famous incident being the 2002 Olympics when a French pairs skating judge was accused of favoring the Russian team in exchange for a gold medal for France in ice dancing.

Nancy Kerrigan's recent family troubles are yet another sad chapter in the strange world of figure skating.