Marinovich Is Ordered to Attend a Probation-Violation Hearing

Avenger quarterback Todd Marinovich was ordered Friday to appear at a probation-violation hearing after missing three drug tests in his treatment program for felony heroin possession.

Marinovich, appearing in Los Angeles Superior Court for a progress report, was ordered by Judge Stephen Marcus to return Oct. 4, at which time it will be determined if the former USC and Raider player violated probation by not complying with the conditions of his treatment program.

A violation could result in Marinovich’s being ordered into “a more rigorous program with more [counseling] meetings and more [drug] testing,” said Tom Johnston, his attorney. A third violation could result in jail time.

Marinovich missed three random drug tests at Impact, a Pasadena outpatient program. Two of the absences were because Marinovich was late in arriving at the facility, and the other was because he could not understand a garbled phone message regarding his testing time, Johnston said.

On each occasion, Marinovich tested negative the next morning for illegal substances, Johnston said.

Marinovich, addressing the court, said he has been tested “anywhere from three to four times a week.”

Johnston said Impact and the probation department have recommended that Marinovich continue his current six-month program. But Marcus, pointing out that missed drug tests are considered positive tests, was clearly perturbed. The judge recalled that Marinovich had also failed to comply with the conditions of his court-ordered rehab program before his treatment was switched in July to a more personalized program under Proposition 36, a voter-approved initiative requiring California judges to sentence most nonviolent drug offenders to treatment instead of jail.

“Let’s be clear, he had problems before,” Marcus said. “This is one more example that Mr. Marinovich may be on the edge here, and I want to find out what’s going on.”

Marcus also denied Johnston’s request that Marinovich fulfill his community service requirement by speaking to various organizations.

Marcus said Marinovich must perform “regular” community service such as working in a hospital, school or on a Caltrans or graffiti-removal unit.