In the wake of her arrest with husband Jim Toth after he was pulled over under suspicion of driving while intoxicated, Reese Witherspoon has released a statement about the incident:
“Out of respect for the ongoing legal situation, I cannot comment on everything that is being reported right now. But I do want to say, I clearly had one drink too many and I am deeply embarrassed about the things I said,” she wrote.
The actress, 37, was driving with Toth, 42, in Atlanta early Friday morning when he was stopped by the police. Witherspoon allegedly started arguing with officers and tried to get out of the car.
According to a police report obtained by Variety, “Mrs. Witherspoon asked, ‘Do you know my name?’ [The officer] answered, ‘No, I don’t need to know your name.’ [The officer] then added, ‘right now.’ Mrs. Witherspoon stated, ‘You’re about to find out who I am.’ “
She was arrested for disorderly conduct and briefly jailed with her husband, who was charged with driving while intoxicated. The couple were released on bond at 3:30 a.m. ET Friday.
(Images via The Huffington Post)
In her statement, Witherspoon continued, “It was definitely a scary situation and I was frightened for my husband, but that is no excuse. I was disrespectful to the officer who was just doing his job.”
“The words I used that night definitely do not reflect who I am. I have nothing but respect for the police and I’m very sorry for my behavior.”
While it’s completely inexcusable to let someone who has been drinking get behind the wheel, we give Witherspoon some credit for taking full responsibility for her mistake.
It seems like too often, celebrities get in trouble and release statements passing blame, denying fault and trying to explain away the problem. It’s a nice change to see someone famous come right out and say, “I messed up and I’m sorry.”
