Former state Sen. Bill Owens, who represented part of  the 2nd Suffolk Senate District before state Sen. Dianne Wilkerson, said Tuesday that the state senator's arrest is ‘unfortunate' and hoped the legal process would be allowed to fully play out.

"The only facts that I'm aware of, is that she's been arrested," Owens told PolitickerMA.com. "Whatever act of indiscretion she is accused of, has not been proven. She is innocent until proven guilty and I'm sure she will have the appropriate defense for the accusations that have been made."

Wilkerson beat Owens, who was Massachusetts' first black state senator, in 1992.

Owens also commented on the racial charges that have been apparent in Wilkerson's race against Sonia Chang-Diaz this year. More than one Wilkerson supporter has claimed that Chang-Diaz is not a person of color, despite her Latino heritage.

Owens said he believes "Ms. Chang-Diaz is a Latino person" and said that the formation of the district so that an African American could be part of the state Senate was due in large part to a coalition of pols of different ethnicities.

"It is a combination of Latino, liberal whites, Republicans and the governor," he said, "that made it possible for the creation of a district where a black person could be elected."