celebrity DUI

July 23, 2018

Celebrity DUI Roundup—Summer 2018 Edition

Getting arrested for DUI can be highly disruptive and embarrassing in itself—but imagine if your shortcomings made national headlines. By definition, famous people rely on publicity to keep them…famous. However, occasionally they get media attention for less than flattering reasons. Even so, we can always learn something from their stories, so let’s take a look at a few high-profile DUI cases from the past few months.

Vince Vaughn

Around 12:30 a.m. on Sunday, June 10, Dodgeball actor Vince Vaughn, 48, was stopped at a sobriety checkpoint in Manhattan Beach outside Los Angeles, WTOP reports. He allegedly failed an on-site sobriety test but opted to take a blood test rather than submit to a breathalyzer. Vaughn was arrested on the scene on suspicion of DUI, as captured by police body cameras. An unnamed passenger in the vehicle was also arrested for public intoxication, and both were cited for delaying an investigation—which under California law is listed in the same section as resisting or obstructing arrest.

January 15, 2018

Celebrity DUIs and Other Misdeeds: Why Are We Obsessed with Them?

by Michael Kraut

Justin Bieber. Lindsey Lohan. Paris Hilton. Kevin Hart. Chris Pine. Reese Witherspoon. Bella Hadid. This list represents a mere handful of known names who have been charged with DUI in Los Angeles (and elsewhere) over the past 10 years, with many others right alongside. It seems so commonplace that, as HuffPost reports, during an appearance on, Jason Priestly joked with Chelsea Handler on her show Chelsea Lately about his own DUI. “What self-respecting Los Angeleno doesn’t have a DUI under their belt?” he said. The joke was accompanied by high-fives with Handler, who, not surprisingly, also has a DUI on her record.

Aside from the controversy of famous people downplaying the seriousness of impaired driving, salacious reports of celebrity wrongdoing have been the guilty pleasure of millions of people for as long as anyone can remember. These impulses of ours are what keep websites like TMZ and The National Enquirer in business.

The question is: Why?

October 23, 2017

The 5 Most Newsworthy DUIs of 2017 (So Far): Lessons to Learn

by Michael Kraut

With just two months to go until 2018 arrives, it’s a good time to take a look at some of the highlights—or lowlights—of DUI arrests that have been reported around the country this year.

1. Off course

Tiger Woods, once the most celebrated golfer in the world, hasn’t been at the top of his game for some time. But his May arrest for DUI may have marked an unfortunate new low in the athlete’s life.

July 31, 2015

Summertime Blues: Celebrity DUIs Keep On Coming [Ty Lawsom, Jeremih and More]

by Michael Kraut

News reports have splashed the story of Denver Nuggets point guard Ty Lawson’s recent arrest for a DUI in the Los Angeles area all over sports pages, television news shows and web sites. But Lawson has plenty of company. Whether the hot summer nights are encouraging the rich and famous to party a little harder, or whether they’re simply losing track of how many adult beverages they’re consuming, famous people have been making headlines for their poor driving choices.

* The California Highway patrol picked up Lawson on Tuesday, July 14th, when they allegedly caught him driving at high speeds in his white Mercedes. This was Lawson’s second DUI arrest this year, so he headed straight for a rehab center in Malibu, once police released him from Los Angeles County Jail.

* On Friday July 17th, R&B singer Jeremih went to a Van Nuys jail after police arrested him on suspicion of DUI. Coincidentally, police picked up the “Birthday Sex” singer on his 28th birthday. The arrest only derailed Jeremih’s birthday partying for a short time. After making the $15,000 bail, he headed to San Diego to celebrate the remainder of his birthday at a club there.

* WWE Hall of Famer and wrestling coach Tammy “Sunny” Sytch picked a bad time to enter through the exit lane of a Walmart parking lot in Leighton, Pennsylvania. The police spotted her and then watched her hit a curb before they pulled her over. Sytch allegedly failed the field sobriety test and scored a .253 blood alcohol level – nearly 3 times the legal limit for DUI in California. Police charged her with DUI, careless driving and driving without a license.

As a frequent contributor to respected media, like The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times and Good Morning America, Los Angeles DUI attorney Michael Kraut of the Kraut Criminal & DUI Lawyers understands what it takes to build successful defenses in complex DUI cases. Contact him and his team today to schedule a consultation.