Downey gets 3 years probation
Thesp pleads no contest to drug charges
|
Downey has been arrested twice on drug charges since he was released from prison in August and is currently enrolled in a drug treatment facility.
At the start of the brief hearing, Downey pleaded no contest to one felony count of cocaine possession and one misdemeanor count of being under the influence of a controlled substance.
As part of the plea deal, prosecutors dropped a third charge, possession of the prescription drug Valium.
The sentencing closes the latest chapter in a string of drug-related problems that have dogged the Oscar-nominated performer for the past five years.
Deputy district attorney Tammy Capone said she agreed to the plea deal largely because of California's Proposition 36, a law approved by voters in November that calls for treatment instead of prison for most non-violent drug offenders.
Downey's lead attorney, James Epstein, also made reference to the new law, saying that the actor "is very appreciative that the state of California is treating his illness as an illness and not a crime."
Earlier on Monday, Downey's former lawyer criticized the plea deal, saying that his famous ex-client's treatment at the Wavelengths drug facility in Malibu, Calif., was "in no way adequate" to cure him of his addiction.
Downey, who is nominated for an Emmy for his work on "Ally McBeal," checked himself into a treatment center following an April drug arrest in the Los Angeles suburb of Culver City. Prosecutors in that case declined to file charges.
A spokeswoman for David E. Kelley Prods., the studio behind "Ally McBeal," said on Thursday there are no plans for Downey to return to the series in the fall.
