- Title: USA: ACTOR ROBERT DOWNEY JUNIOR ARRESTED AGAIN FOR ALLEGED DRUGS CHARGES
- Date: 26th April 2001
- Summary: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (APRIL 24, 2001) (REUTERS) SCU HOTEL SIGN ZOOM OUT SLV BALDWIN HOTEL WHERE ROBERT DOWNEY ALLEGEDLY BROUGHT DRUGS; SLV BACK ALLY BEHIND THE BALDWIN HOTEL WHERE DOWNEY WAS ARRESTED (3 SHOTS) SLV EXTERIOR OF THE CULVER CITY POLICE STATION MV POLICE LIEUTENANT DAVE TANKENSON (SOUNDBITE) (English) POLICE LIEUTENANT TANKENSON, SAYING "This morning at about twelve ten am, one of our officers who on patrol saw someone in an alley and made contact with that person. During the investigation she recognized that person as Robert Downey Jr. She also determined he was displaying symptoms of being under the influence of a controlled substance. Mr. Downey was arrested. He was brought here to the Culver City police department. He was booked. He submitted a urine sample to determine the level of narcotics in his system and eventually he was issued a citation and a release to appear in court and released to the custody of his parole officer."
- Embargoed: 11th May 2001 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: LOS ANGELES AND INDIO, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES / VARIOUS FILM LOCATIONS
- Country: USA
- Topics: Crime,Entertainment,General,Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA2JGYP7Y2AK3KKEEUWZT1RYIIC
- Story Text: Robert Downey Jr., the Oscar-nominated actor whose career has been repeatedly jeopardized by charges of drug use has been arrested again for allegedly being under the influence of a controlled substance.
According to police, Downey, 36, who spent a year in a California prison for a drug conviction and currently faces trial stemming from an arrest in Palm Springs, was taken into custody just after midnight local time (0700 gmt) on Tuesday (April 24) in the Los Angeles suburb of Culver City and tested for drug use.
The actor was cited and detained for several hours before he was released into the custody of his parole officer and told to appear in court on May 4, Lieutenant Dave Tankenson of the Culver City Police Department said.
Tankenson did not identify the substance Downey was accused of taking but said he was observed by a police officer "showing symptoms" of drug use.
Downey's publicist, Alan Nierob, said the actor had "voluntarily checked himself into an undisclosed rehabilitation facility."
The statement made no mention of Downey's arrest and Nierob declined to comment further, referring calls to the actor's criminal attorney who could not be immediately reached for comment.
Downey, who was nominated for an Oscar for his performance in
"Chaplin," already faces drug charges in nearby San Bernardino County, which could send him back to prison if he is convicted.
Those charges stem from his November arrest at a posh Palm Springs resort hotel, where police allegedly found cocaine and the prescription drug Valium in his room.
If convicted on the Palm Springs charges, Downey could be sent back to prison for five years. San Bernardino County prosecutors, who failed to reach a plea agreement with Downey, could not be reached for comment on the Culver City arrest.
The actor is currently appearing as a guest star on Fox-TV's "Ally McBeal," playing a lawyer and the love interest of Calista Flockhart's title character.
He landed the role, which won him a Golden Globe award, just one week after his release from prison last August. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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