9. Kennedy Passed At Least Four Homes Where He Could Have Asked for Help
Senator Kennedy passed numerous homes that could have potentially provided aid to the trapped Kopechne twice. After his first failure to retriever her, he rested on the bank for a short time before walking back to the party. He would have passed no fewer than four inhabited homes on his way back. The closest of which, Dike House, was owned by a woman who spoke to the press after the incident. She stated that she was home that night and had a light on until well after midnight. She is the same resident who heard a car go by at high speed near midnight. Her home had a working telephone that Kennedy could have used to call emergency services for a diver.
While Dike house was the closest, at only 150 meters from the site, Kennedy walked by three additional homes on his way back to the rented cottage. While it is not clear if these had lights on, attempts certainly could have been made to rouse the residents by knocking on doors or windows. When Kennedy arrived back at the rented cottage, he did not inform the entire party about what had happened. Instead, he pulled two close and trusted friends, Joe Gargan and Paul Markham, aside to ask for their help retrieving her from the car.