The actor, playwright and Pulitzer Prize winning writer Sam Shepard was charged with driving under the influence in Central Illinois early Saturday. Shepard reportedly had been drinking at ‘Fat Jacks’, a bar in Bloomington, and was stopped around 2:00 am for speeding while on his way back to his hotel. The arresting officer said Shepard appeared intoxicated and had driven his Chevy Blazer onto the curb during the traffic stop. His blood alcohol content was more than twice the .08% legal limit for intoxication in Illinois. Shepard posted bond and was released Sunday.

Shepard, 65, was driving from Minnesota through Illinois on his was home to Kentucky. He appeared in the films ‘Black Hawk Down’, ‘Swordfish’, ‘The Pelican Brief’ and ‘The Notebook’. He received a Pulitzer in 1979 for his play ‘Buried Child’. Shepard lives with his longtime partner Jessica Lange, with whom he has two children.

Have been charged with drunk driving? You will need to hire a DUI lawyer to guide you through this difficult time in your life.

Heather Locklear entered a plea of no contest to misdemeanor reckless driving and, in exchange, had her case of driving under the influence of drugs dismissed. Locklear was not in the Santa Barbara court on Friday morning when her California defense attorney accepted a plea bargain that calls for the actress to serve three years of probation, pay a $700 fine and complete a 12-hour drug education program.

Last September the 47-year old Locklear was charged with California DUI in Montecito after a 911 call alerted police to her erratic driving. She was determined to be impaired by prescription drugs. A blood test confirmed no presence of alcohol or illegal narcotics.

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The California Highway Patrol reported an up-tick in arrests for drunk driving across the state. A total of 438 motorists were charged with driving under the influence in California, with 11 traffic related deaths attributable to alcohol. Last year there were 362 arrests and 4 fatalities.

In the San Francisco Bay Area, officers arrested 84 drivers for California DUI, more than twice the number in 2007. The increase in drunk driving arrests surprised law enforcement officers, as the number of DUI arrests made during the Christmas holiday were down as much as 40%.

The arrest reporting period started early evening New Year

The Austin Police Department arrested 24 motorists for driving while intoxicated in Texas on New Year

“Ultimate Fighting Championship Lightweight Josh Neer was charged with driving under the influence in Des Moines Iowa after reportedly hitting two vehicles and leading police on a high speed chase. Neer fled the scene of the accident and exceeded 100-mph while leading cops on a 15 minute chase. He was stopped with spike strips that deflated his tires.

Neer was booked for drunk driving in Iowa and freed on a $7000 bond.

Neer holds a 3-4 record in the UFC octagon, winning a unanimous decision on his return to UFC in early 2008. He cancelled a September bout and is scheduled to return to action February 7 in UFC Fight Night 17.

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The first 2009 arrest for driving while intoxicated in Waco, Texas came with a bang early Thursday morning. Shortly after midnight, Martin Flores, 23, crashed his 1997 Pontiac Grand Am into the back of a police cruiser that was stopped at an intersection.

The accident caused little damage to either vehicle and no one was injured. Flores was booked on suspicion of drunk driving in Waco at the McLennan County Jail and released Thursday afternoon.

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Law enforcement agencies across the state arrested nearly 2,300 motorists for driving under the influence in Arizona. The annual sweep began Thanksgiving Day and ended New Year

Effective Thursday, January 1, there will be zero tolerance for repeat offenders of driving under the influence in California. A new law stipulates that a person convicted of CA DUI cannot operate a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol content of .01 per cent or greater while on probation for the DUI offense. A motorist on probation for California DUI is required to submit to a breath test when requested by a law enforcement officer. Refusal to do so will result in a ticket being issued, driver

David Sainato, 42, is a bail bondsman who makes a living out of helping people get out jail. On Monday evening he had to post his own bail after crashing his Ferrari during a wild chase that resulted in several people being sent to the hospital.

Weehawken police were alerted to a gray Ferrari 430 that had hit several cars around 6:30 pm. Police managed to pull over the vehicle but as they approached, Sainato sped away, striking a Subaru station wagon in his attempted escape. The Ferrari then struck two more vehicles a few hundred yards away. One of those vehicles, a Chevrolet Impala carrying six people, flipped over and came to a rest on its roof. Finally the Ferrari, which had a value of $262,000 when new, hit a Nissan Maxima, damaging yet another vehicle with flying debris.

Sainato was treated for head trauma at a local medical center. Four of the six people in the Impala were treated for non-life threatening injuries.

The results of tests for blood alcohol content are still pending. Sainato faces several charges, including driving while intoxicated in New Jersey.

Sainato was arrested for making terroristic threats last September 30. On November 23 he was charged again with making terroristic threats and for aggravated assault. He is currently out on $250,000 bail for those charges. Last February, Sainato sideswiped another vehicle and hit a tree, for which he was charged with drunk driving in New Jersey and resisting arrest. In the early 90

Doug Wilson, the star of television home improvement series ‘Trading Spaces’, was arrested for driving under the influence in Illinois. Wilson was stopped around 1:00 am in Decatur Illinois after failing to yield to an emergency vehicle. That vehicle happened to be a police cruiser with its lights and siren blaring.

Wilson was charged with aggravated Illinois DUI, driving with a suspended license, failure to yield the right of way and the illegal transport of alcohol. He was released after posting a $1000 bond.

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