(The Center Square) – Philadelphia Democratic state Rep. Kevin Boyle remains unaccounted for on Wednesday, according to a statement from his family circulating on social media.
Boyle’s brother, U.S. Rep. Brendan Boyle – who represents Pennsylvania’s second congressional district – said in a statement shared by multiple media outlets on X that Kevin lives with “a serious mental health condition” that became symptomatic several months ago after two years of recovery.
“Kevin’s mental illness has been a nightmare for us,” Brendan Boyle said. “Like any family who has a beloved member with a serious health issue, we are doing the best we can to help him get better.”
Police issued an arrest warrant on Tuesday for Kevin Boyle after he allegedly violated a protection from abuse order against his wife. It was first issued in 2021 after Kevin experienced a psychotic episode.
Brendan Boyle said that after that incident, his brother received medical treatment and began taking medication to manage his illness, noting that he won re-election “overwhelmingly” in 2022 and was tapped to lead a legislative committee.
“We genuinely believed his mental health issue was in the past,” Brendan Boyle said.
The development follows weeks of escalating public outbursts from the state lawmaker, whose deteriorating mental state forced Democratic leadership to rescind his committee chairmanship. The party also threw support behind his primary challenger, Sean Dougherty.
Tensions erupted on the House floor Wednesday as news of Kevin Boyle’s arrest warrant circulated. Republican legislators blasted Democrats for allowing the lawmaker to “vote by designation” – based on a form he signed weeks prior – despite his apparent fugitive status.
“Remote voting was not created to allow members with arrest warrants to continue to solidify their party’s razor-thin majority,” said Rep. Charity Grimm Krupa, R-McClellandtown, in a co-sponsorship memo she began circulating to ban lawmakers who are incarcerated or have an active arrest warrant.
“I had hoped a resolution like this would not be necessary,” she said. “But seeing common sense lose in a party-line vote on the House floor today, I believe my legislation should move to the top of the General Assembly’s priority list.”
In a statement, House Democratic leadership said “vote by designation” is a “long-standing practice,” though the chamber is dealing with “a unique and sad set of circumstances.”
“Rep. Boyle desperately needs help, not partisan performative politics,” the statement said. “Rest assured, in short order, the state House will be taking appropriate, compassionate and affirmative steps to address this matter without theater, partisanship or delay.”