Mel Gibson arrested on suspicion of DUI

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Mel Gibson arrested on suspicion of DUI
Actor was cited and released; bail was set for $5,000

MALIBU, Calif. - Mel Gibson was arrested early Friday for suspicion of driving under the influence, a Sheriff’s Department spokesman said.

Gibson’s vehicle was speeding eastbound on the Pacific Coast Highway when officers stopped him at 2:36 a.m., Sheriff’s spokesman Steve Whitmore said.

Gibson, 50, was booked at the Lost Hills Sheriff’s station at 4:06 a.m., according to department records. The actor-director was cited and released, Whitmore said. Bail was set at $5,000.

The investigation is ongoing,” Whitmore said. “As we would do with anyone, we don’t want to release any more since the information is fragmentary.”

Gibson’s spokesman, Alan Nierob, said he was looking into the matter.

Gibson won a best-director Oscar for 1995’s “Braveheart.”

Like his 2004 religious blockbuster, “The Passion of the Christ,” which was shot in Aramaic and Latin, his new film, “Apocalypto,” was done in an ancient tongue, Yucatec Maya.

Gibson has starred in the “Lethal Weapon” and “Mad Max” films, “What Women Want” and “The Man Without a Face,” among other movies.

© 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/14080210/

[canoilers]

I'm amazed this seems to be happening alot latetly. I've heard of a few stars that have been getting DUI's lately.

[SevenUp!]

Yet to be proven that Mr. Gibson is guilty, however it does happen quite a bit and I wonder when people are going to get the message. :uhh:

[canoilers]

Probably never, or they would've gotten it already.

[Troll]

Hollywood Split Over Mel Gibson's Future
Jul 30, 4:49 PM EST

A stunned Hollywood debated the future of one of its biggest stars Sunday as a sheriff's watchdog launched an investigation into a possible cover up of a leaked report that quoted Mel Gibson unleashing a tirade of anti-Semitic remarks during a drunken driving arrest.

One media expert said Gibson irreparably damaged his career with his "crazy" behavior following his arrest by Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputies in Malibu early Friday. Charges of anti-Semitism were also leveled against the actor-director with the release of his 2004 blockbuster "The Passion of the Christ."

"It's a nuclear disaster for him," said publicist Michael Levine, who has represented Michael Jackson and Charlton Heston, among others. "I don't see how he can restore himself."

The entertainment Web site TMZ posted what it said were four pages from the original arrest report, which quoted Gibson as launching an expletive-laden "barrage of anti-Semitic remarks" after he was stopped on Pacific Coast Highway.

According to the report, in addition to threatening the arresting deputy and trying to escape, Gibson said, "The Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world," and asked the officer, James Mee, "Are you a Jew?"

The report has not been made public, but the Los Angeles Times reported Sunday that it had independently verified its authenticity.

Gibson's publicist, Alan Nierob, would not elaborate beyond a nonspecific apology Gibson issued Saturday. Sheriff's sources also declined to comment on Gibson's alleged remarks.

Studio executives, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the matter, were divided on how Gibson's behavior would affect his career. One noted that people have short memories, including filmmakers who might want to profit from Gibson's star power.

The Office of Independent Review, a department watchdog panel, has opened an investigation into whether authorities gave Gibson preferential treatment by covering up his alleged inflammatory comments, said its chief attorney, Mike Gennaco.

"Assuming that the report was excised, then the question is was it done for a good reason within regulations," he said.

Gibson has filmed public service announcements for Sheriff Lee Baca's relief committee dressed in a sheriff's uniform.

"There is no cover-up," Baca told the Los Angeles Times.


"Our job is not to (focus) on what he said. It's to establish his blood-alcohol level when he was driving and proceed with the case. Trying someone on rumor and innuendo is no way to run an investigation, at least one with integrity."

Gibson said in his apology that he said "despicable" things to deputies during his arrest.

"I acted like a person completely out of control when I was arrested and said things that I do not believe to be true and which are despicable," Gibson said.

Abraham H. Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League, called Gibson's apology "unremorseful and insufficient."

"It's not a proper apology because it does not go to the essence of his bigotry and his anti-Semitism," he said in a statement on the organization's Web site. "We would hope that Hollywood now would realize the bigot in their midst and that they will distance themselves from this anti-Semite."

This is not the first time Gibson has faced accusations of anti-Semitism. Gibson produced, directed and financed "Passion," which some Jewish leaders said cast Jews as the killers of Jesus.

In a 2004 interview with ABC's Diane Sawyer, Gibson said he was not anti-Semitic.

"To be anti-Semitic is a sin," he said. "It's been condemned by one Papal Council after another. To be anti-Semitic is to be un-Christian, and I'm not."

Days before "Passion" was released, Gibson's father Hutton Gibson was quoted saying the Holocaust was mostly "fiction." The younger Gibson has said that he will not speak against his father.

Gibson, 50, was arrested after deputies stopped his 2006 Lexus LS 430 for speeding at 2:36 a.m. Friday. Sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore said deputies clocked him doing 87 mph in a 45 mph zone.

A breath test indicated Gibson's blood-alcohol level was 0.12 percent, Whitmore said. The legal limit in California is 0.08 percent.

Gibson posted $5,000 bail and was released hours later.

In his statement, Gibson also said he has struggled with alcoholism and had taken steps "to ensure my return to health."

He won a best-director Oscar for 1995's "Braveheart." He also starred in the "Lethal Weapon" and "Mad Max" films, "What Women Want" and "The Man Without a Face," among other films.

———

Associated Press writers Gary Gentile, Jeremiah Marquez and Solvej Schou contributed to this report from Los Angeles.


http://www.movies.msn.com/news/article.aspx?news=229037&GT1=7701

[matty]

It's going to be interesting to see what happens with him after his outburst.

[Troll]

Police Report Confirms Gibson's Tirade
Jul 31, 4:46 PM EST


The Associated Press

LOS ANGELES -- An official police report on Mel Gibson's arrest on drunken driving charges substantiates claims that he made anti-Semitic remarks and threatened a deputy, a law enforcement official said Monday.

Meanwhile, Gibson's publicist confirmed to the Associated Press that the actor is participating in an ongoing program to deal with his alcoholism.

On Monday, Sheriff's Department officials sent prosecutors their case, which also says a tequila bottle was found in Gibson's car when he was pulled over on the Pacific Coast Highway.

Gibson had released a lengthy statement Saturday apologizing for saying "despicable" things to sheriff's deputies when he was arrested, but he did not elaborate. The entertainment Web site TMZ.com had reported that the sheriff's department was considering eliminating the anti-Semitic remarks from its official report.

The report forwarded to prosecutors cites Gibson as making disparaging comments about Jews, according to the law enforcement official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.

The district attorney's office confirmed prosecutors had received the case and it was under review. A tentative arraignment date was set for Sept. 28.

A sheriff's spokesman Monday defended the department's handling of the case.

"In that case file will be (Gibson's) statement, will be our report, will be everything pertinent to his blood-alcohol level. We have done our job," sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore told reporters Monday at department headquarters. "We hope we've done it with not only professionalism and intelligence, but held to the highest standard of legal and moral imperative."

The Sheriff's Department, he said, was "convinced because of our investigation and because of his own self-illuminating statement that he will be convicted of driving under the influence."

In his statement, Gibson said he has struggled with alcoholism and taken steps "to ensure my return to health."

The actor was "participating in an ongoing program to deal with this," Gibson's publicist, Alan Nierob told The Associated Press on Monday. "The guy is trying to stay alive."

http://movies.msn.com/movies/article.aspx?news=229195&GT1=7701

[Troll]

Mel Gibson charged with drunken driving
If convicted, he could face up to six months in jail

LOS ANGELES - Mel Gibson was charged with misdemeanor drunken driving Wednesday, five days after he was stopped on Malibu’s Pacific Coast Highway for speeding and made anti-Semitic comments that have stained his public image.

Prosecutors made no mention of Gibson’s self-described “belligerent behavior” and “despicable” remarks in the complaint, which also charges him with having an elevated blood-alcohol level and an open container of liquor in his car.

If convicted, Gibson faces up to six months in jail, the district attorney’s office said.

The ball is now in his court whether he is going to ask for a trial,” said district attorney’s spokeswoman Sandi Gibbons.

He does not have to appear for his Sept. 28 arraignment. A lawyer may appear in his place.

First-time misdemeanor drunken driving offenders usually face minimal, if any, time behind bars.

If convicted, it would be up to the judge to determine if Gibson would serve any time, Gibbons said. “They might count the time he spent in custody as time served,” she said.

A telephone message seeking comment was left for Gibson’s lawyers, Blair Berk and Barry Tarlow.

The Sheriff’s Department said Gibson was stopped at 2:36 a.m. Friday after being seen speeding at 87 mph in a 45-mph zone. Authorities said his blood-alcohol level tested at 0.12 percent. A California driver is legally intoxicated at 0.08 percent.

According to a law enforcement official who spoke on condition of anonymity, the sheriff’s report says Gibson told the arresting deputy: “The Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world,” and asked him, “Are you a Jew?”

The deputy’s arrest notes reportedly also say Gibson at one point “bolted” away from him and tried to escape before being handcuffed.

Loyola University Law School professor Laurie Levenson said it was noteworthy that Gibson was not charged with resisting arrest or making criminal threats.

“I think they wanted to treat him as normally as possible,” she said. “And we don’t know the facts. Did he walk away or run away? Were his statements to the deputy really threatening? That would make a difference.”

If convicted, Gibson will face a fine and a restriction on his license, Levenson said.

Two public apologies
“But the biggest costs are not those associated with the legal system,” she said. “It’s the business costs and reputation costs. In the end, this could be the most costly infraction of all time.”

Gibson, a top star of the 1980s for the “Lethal Weapon” series and winner of the best-director Oscar for 1995’s “Braveheart,” has issued two public apologies, and his publicist, Alan Nierob, has said the actor-director was in an ongoing program for alcohol abuse before the arrest and has entered another, on an outpatient basis.

The latest apology addressed the Jewish community directly.

“I want to apologize specifically to everyone in the Jewish community for the vitriolic and harmful words,” Gibson said in a statement issued by his publicist. “Please know from my heart that I am not an anti-Semite. I am not a bigot. Hatred of any kind goes against my faith.

Gibson, 50, has had a troubled relationship with Jewish organizations since his 2004 blockbuster “The Passion of the Christ,” which some criticized for portraying Jews as responsible for the death of Jesus. Supporters say the movie merely followed the Gospel story.

Gibson’s apologies weren’t accepted by former TV producer Merv Adelson, who took out an ad in Wednesday’s Los Angeles Times blasting movie studio heads for not strongly and publicly condemning Gibson.

“Let’s make ourselves proud and NOT support this JERK in any way, just because he’s a so called ’star,”’ wrote Adelson, co-founder of Lorimar Productions, which produced such TV hits as “Eight is Enough” and “The Waltons.”

The Sheriff’s Department has denied allegations of a cover-up that stem from an initial account that described the arrest as occurring without incident and which made no mention of Gibson’s remarks to the deputy.

An independent county office that investigates allegations of wrongdoing by the department announced after a preliminary review that the arrest was handled within policy.

But the head of the agency, Michael Gennaco, said Tuesday he wouldn’t have described the arrest as being without incident, and he couldn’t say whether the department tried to shield Gibson’s remarks from the public when the original arrest report was ordered modified and the comments placed in a supplemental report.

In a related matter, sheriff’s spokesman Steve Whitmore said it was not a violation of department policy when a sergeant drove Gibson to a tow yard to retrieve his car after being cited and released on his own recognizance.

“It’s within our policy to help people out and also to avoid a possible conflict,” Whitmore said, describing the brief trip in a patrol car. “We didn’t want Mr. Gibson to get into any kind of disturbance with the paparazzi.”

© 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/14156646/from/RS.1/

[Alex]

Mel Gibson arrested??? :shocked: can't hardly believe that. But it seems in some way he's guilty, we'll see what can happen next days with his situation.