Aug 2, 2006 5:15 pm US/Pacific
Mel Gibson Charged With DUI
LOS ANGELES (AP) ―
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Mel Gibson, actor and director, is seen in a booking photo Friday after being arrested on drunken driving charges, Los Angeles, Calif.
AP
Mel Gibson was charged Wednesday with misdemeanor drunken driving, having an elevated blood-alcohol level and having an open container of liquor in his car.
The three counts were filed by Los Angeles County prosecutors five days after Gibson was pulled over on Malibu's Pacific Coast Highway for speeding and he unleashed anti-Semitic comments at the arresting deputy.
The open container violation, for a bottle of tequila allegedly found in his car, is an infraction of the vehicle code.
The charges did not mention Gibson's self-described "belligerent behavior" toward the deputy or any allegation of speeding. Arraignment was set for Sept. 28 in Malibu Superior Court.
If convicted, Gibson faces up to six months in jail, the district attorney's office said.
On Tuesday, Gibson acknowledged making anti-Semitic slurs during a drunken driving arrest and begged Jewish community leaders Tuesday to meet with him to find "the appropriate path for healing." A sheriff's watchdog, meanwhile, said deputies appeared to have handled Gibson's arrest properly.
It was the actor's second apology since sheriff's deputies stopped him for speeding early Friday on Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, where officials said he was doing 87 in a 45 mph zone. He was arrested for investigation of drunken driving after a hostile, offensive confrontation with deputies.
Gibson, a top star of the 1980s for the "Lethal Weapon" series and winner of the best-director Oscar for 1995's "Braveheart," has long acknowledged problems with alcohol. In a Saturday statement, he said he acted "completely out of control" during his arrest.
Witnesses said Gibson had been drinking at a Malibu beachfront restaurant called Moonshadows before his car was stopped. Widely distributed photos show Gibson with his arms around several young women at the restaurant shortly before his arrest.
(© 2006 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
SLIDESHOW: Mel Gibson Meltdown
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