July 29, 2006
HAMMERING THE NAILS IN HIMSELF:
Mel gives cops hell: Report: Drunken Gibson threatens officer in rant (MICHELLE CARUSO, 7/29/06, NY DAILY NEWS)
Gibson, 50, was pulled over for speeding at 3:10 a.m. on the Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, Calif., cops said. The Oscar-winning "Braveheart" star and director was driving 80 mph when he was snared by a radar trap, sheriff's deputies said. The speed limit in that area is 45 mph to 55 mph.Gibson failed both alcohol breath and field sobriety tests, deputies said. His blood-alcohol level was .12, Deputy Anthony Moore said. The legal limit is .08 in California.
According to the incident report obtained by TMZ.com, the Road Warrior embarked on a belligerent, anti-Semitic outburst when he realized he had been busted.
"F-----g Jews. The Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world," Mee's report quotes him as saying.
"Are you a Jew?" Gibson asked the deputy, according to the report.
The actor also berated the deputy, threatening, "You motherf----r. I'm going to f--- you," according to Mee's report.
The actor also told the cop he "owns Malibu" and would spend all his money "to get even with me," Mee said in his report.
TMZ quoted a law enforcement source as saying Gibson noticed a female sergeant on the scene and yelled at her, "What do you think you're looking at, sugar t--s?"
MORE:
But he took responsibility well, Mel Gibson apologizes for DUI arrest (SANDY COHEN, 7/29/06, AP)
Mel Gibson issued a lengthy statement Saturday apologizing for his drunk driving arrest and saying he has battled alcoholism throughout his life.The actor and "The Passion of the Christ" director also apologized for what he said were "despicable" statements he made to the deputies who arrested him early Friday on Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu.
"I acted like a person completely out of control when I was arrested," he said in a statement issued by his publicist. "I disgraced myself and my family with my behavior and for that I am truly sorry. I have battled with the disease of alcoholism for all of my adult life and profoundly regret my horrific relapse."
Posted by Orrin Judd at July 29, 2006 2:07 PM
If Mel really did own Malibu he would have put a covenant in against Barbara Streisand by now.
Posted by: John at July 29, 2006 2:56 PMHe thought the Deputy Sheriff might be Jewish? Man, he was drunk.
Posted by: David Cohen at July 29, 2006 2:58 PMWhat an idiot!
Posted by: erp at July 29, 2006 5:17 PMI'm always surprised when this sort of thing happens to rich celebrities. Don't they all have minders/bodyguards who can drive or call a cab? Or perhaps their egos just get in the way of common sense.
Posted by: PapayaSF at July 29, 2006 5:18 PMIt's interesting that OJ thought he was taking responsibility. I thought he was whining. In fact, I was going to blog it under the title, "Would You Like A Communion Wafer With That Whine." I'm getting a little sick of the choice of drinking too much and then driving being presented as a noble fight against a disease. If it ain't caused by a virus or a bacteria, it ain't a disease.
He'd be better off arguing that, since he's naturally attracted to alcohol, he should be allowed to marry his whiskey bottle.
Posted by: David Cohen at July 29, 2006 11:50 PMHe apologized. The bottle didn't.
Go to a 12 step program and see how few take responsibility for what they did while drunk.
Posted by: oj at July 29, 2006 11:53 PMSure, because the first of the 12 steps is to eschew personal responsibility:
We admitted we were powerless over our addiction - that our lives had become unmanageable.
I can understand why Mel should want to blame the Jews for all the wars in the world (since so many wars are caused by sincere and earnest attempts to rid the world of those wascally vahmints).
But it's less certain why all Jews should be blamed for his passion with the bottle.
(I mean, couldn't he just blame the Bronfmans?)
Still, the article leaves this reader less than satisfied: was the deputy, after all, Jewish? Or wasn't he? And if not, perhaps he liked bagels and lox? Pickled herring, perhaps? (The influence so often runs silent and deep.)
Posted by: Barry Meislin at July 30, 2006 3:48 AMActually, they start be just acknowledging they have a problem.
Posted by: oj at July 30, 2006 9:08 AMWhy wasn't this handled with the exquisite discretion that surrounded the Kennedy spawn's very similar episode in DC? No tape was made of his statement which could have very well included very similar ravings, nor was he taken to jail.
Posted by: erp at July 30, 2006 10:39 AMHe has taken responsibility for being drunk. Fine. What about being an antisemite? Alcohol loosened his tongue, but it did not make him say what he said. That came from inside.
Posted by: wf at July 30, 2006 3:48 PMAnti-Semitism is rampant in the U.S. Anybody still want to disagree.
Posted by: erp at July 30, 2006 6:05 PMIf it were he wouldn't apologize for anti-Semitic comments. None of the Christophobes apologized to him. Jews get a pass on their hatred of Christians.
Posted by: oj at July 30, 2006 6:24 PMJews hate Christians? Call me naive, but I was not aware of that.
Posted by: wf at July 30, 2006 6:35 PMI started the Rwandan genocide. I apologize too.
Posted by: Matt Cohen at July 31, 2006 9:40 AM