Lamar Odom arrested on suspicion of DUI in San Fernando Valley
Veteran NBA player Lamar Odom was arrested Friday morning on suspicion of driving under the influence after he was spotted driving erratically on the 101 Freeway in the San Fernando Valley, the California Highway Patrol said.
Odom, a free agent who has played for the Lakers and most recently the Clippers, was arrested at 3:54 a.m. and booked into jail in Van Nuys at 5:01 a.m., the Los Angeles Times reported.
CHP officials said they spotted Odom driving a white Mercedes sports utility vehicle eastbound on the 101 Freeway near Sepulveda Boulevard. The driver was driving in a “serpentine manner” at speeds of about 50 mph.
DOCUMENT: Lamar Odom’s arrest report
Authorities tried to pull over Odom, but he continued driving eastbound, passing Van Nuys Boulevard and Woodman Avenue. He exited at Coldwater Canyon Boulevard and came to a stop, CHP officials said.
Odom showed “objective signs of intoxication and was unable to perform field sobriety tests as explained and demonstrated,” according to a CHP report.
Odom was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol and possibly drugs.
At the Van Nuys jail, Odom refused all chemical tests and was booked without incident, CHP officials said.
Odom has made headlines in recent weeks for alleged drug use, including reports last weekend that he was missing after a fight with his wife, Khloe Kardashian Odom.
His agent told ESPN that the basketball player was “not missing,” and a source told the outlet that Odom was at a Los Angeles hotel as friends tried to help him with a drug problem.
Kardashian Odom tweeted about the reports, saying it was “really hard to sit here and listen to people talk … about my family.”
In a separate case, Los Angeles prosecutors said last week that they would not file charges against Odom in connection with a reported battery and grand theft arrest last month involving a paparazzo in Hollywood.
Instead, Odom would be required to attend a city attorney’s hearing that can include a warning to avoid future run-ins or an order to attend counseling.
The incident, captured on video, took place on El Cerrito Place near Franklin Avenue. It showed Odom confiscating a rolling bag believed to contain camera equipment from a photographer who asked him questions about whether he was having an extramarital affair.
Odom, who is married to Khloe Kardashian, is then shown placing the bag in the trunk of his white Mercedes coupe and driving off.
In the same video he appears again on Hollywood Boulevard removing the items from his trunk and leaving them on the street.
The Los Angeles County dstrict attorney declined to file charges against Odom, citing insufficient evidence that a felony had been committed.
In 2001, Odom was suspended twice for drug violations while playing for the Clippers. The NBA declined to confirm the nature of the violations.
Drug rumors and some doubts about his character bumped him from the top spot in the 1999 draft down to the fourth pick, which is where the Clippers found him. He played for the Miami Heat, the Lakers and the Dallas Mavericks before returning to the Clippers last year.
-- Richard Winton, Los Angeles Times
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