Friday, August 24, 2007

Lindsay Lohan Reaches Plea Deal, Will Serve One Day In Jail; 'I Relapsed,' Actress Says

Lindsay Lohan reached a plea deal Thursday (August 23) on misdemeanor DUI and drug charges that will find her spending one day in jail, serving 10 days of community service and completing a drug-treatment program, according to The Associated Press. She will not stand trial.

Through her lawyer, Lohan pleaded guilty to two counts of being under the influence of a controlled substance (cocaine), and no contest to two counts of driving with a blood-alcohol level above .08 percent and one count of reckless driving (see "Lindsay Lohan Arrested Again For DUI; Reportedly Checks Back Into Rehab"). Two DUI counts were dropped, and all the charges are misdemeanors -- a lucky break for the actress, as felony charges could have landed her in jail for more than a year.

Lohan was placed on 36 months probation and will be required to complete an 18-month alcohol-education program and pay hundreds of dollars in fines. She must also finish a three-day county coroner program that will require her to visit a morgue and talk to victims of drunken drivers.

"It is clear to me that my life has become completely unmanageable because I am addicted to alcohol and drugs," Lohan wrote in a statement released to MTV News. "Recently, I relapsed and did things for which I am ashamed. I broke the law, and today I took responsibility by pleading guilty to charges in my case.

"No matter what I said when I was under the influence on the day I was arrested, I am not blaming anyone else for my conduct other than myself," the statement continues. "I thank God I did not injure others. I easily could have. I very much want to be healthy and gain control of my life and career and have asked for medical help in doing so. I am taking these steps to improve my life. Luckily, I am not alone in my daily struggle and I know that people like me have succeeded. Maybe with time it will become easier. I hope so."

Lohan's cocaine charges stem from a small packet of cocaine police discovered in her jeans when she was arrested on July 24 in Santa Monica, California. According to prosecutors, the amount of cocaine found tested below the .05 grams required to qualify for a felony filing. After a May 26 crash — in which Lohan is alleged to have lost control of her Mercedes and crashed into a tree on Sunset Boulevard at 5:26 a.m. — tests on a substance found in Lohan's purse came up as .04 grams of cocaine powder, according to a press release on the charges from the DA's office.

During her second arrest — for allegedly chasing another car driven by the mother of a former assistant — officers found a container on Lohan that tested positive for .02 grams of cocaine, according to the DA office press release (see "Lindsay Lohan Proclaims Innocence, Says Drugs Were 'Not Mine': Report").

Lohan is currently at the Cirque Lodge treatment center in Sundance, Utah, where she has been ordered to stay indefinitely.

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