In the old days, the rich and famous used chauffeurs, and looking at some celebrities’ driving records this summer, it’s easy to see why. From Amanda Bynes’s plea to Obama to Randy Travis’s butt-naked appearance during his arrest, see the craziest celebrity DUI cases of the summer.
AP Photo (3) ; Corbis ; AP Images for Hidden Valley Lunch Break for Schools ; Getty Images
Joe Simpson is barely a celebrity—he’s Jessica Simpson’s father—but that hasn’t stopped him from earning a DUI as if he were one. Papa Simpson was busted earlier this month in Sherman Oaks, Calif., and charged with two misdemeanor counts of driving under the influence and driving with a blood alcohol level of 0.08 percent or higher. The 54-year-old could face six months in jail, 36 months’ probation, and a $1,000 fine if convicted.
Dan Steinberg / AP Photo
After the behind-the-wheel track record Amanda Bynes has earned herself this year, we’re strongly recommending that she invests in a bicycle. The former Nickelodeon star was charged with a DUI in June (the arrest was in April) after she allegedly sideswiped a police car in Hollywood and refused to take a Breathalyzer or drug test at the scene of the accident. Her response? She turned to the president, of course. “I don’t drink,” she wrote in a tweet addressed to @BarackObama. “Please fire the cop who arrested me. I also don’t hit and run. The end.” In the weeks before that, Bynes reportedly was seen attempting a three-point U-turn while texting, which resulted in her backing over a curb, holding up traffic, and sideswiping another vehicle. Bynes was busted yet again on Aug. 4 for allegedly pulling another hit-and-run. Bynes’s most recent car trouble took place just last week, when she apparently was rear-ended by another vehicle. There were no injuries, and police did not disclose whether the other driver was blaming Bynes for the accident.
Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department / AP Photo
Porn queen Jenna Jameson pled guilty to her DUI case earlier this month, after getting busted for driving with a blood alcohol level of 0.13 in May, and driving her car into a light pole at 1:30 in the morning. She was sentenced to three years’ informal probation, a three-month alcohol probation program—and the Mothers Against Drunk Driving program in Orange County.
Donald Trail for Perez Hilton / AP Photo
Iron Chef’s Cat Cora is a fierce lady—and not just in the kitchen, as the man whose car got rear-ended by Cora’s vehicle could tell you. In the 911 call placed to police, a man named Andy said the 45-year-old chef was “driving insane” and later was “acting really weird and yelling at us.” As it turns out, Cora reportedly had just left a bar after getting into an argument with her longtime partner, Jennifer Cora, and was driving with a blood alcohol content of 0.19—more than twice the legal limit. A videotape later emerged of Cora behind the wheel, calling the other driver a “nerd.” Cora later released a statement saying, “I deeply regret my decision to drive that evening after my designated driver became unavailable. I learned a very important lesson from this experience and take full accountability for my actions.” That “accountability” included three years' probation, nine months of DUI school, $2,386 in fines, and a 120-day suspended jail sentence (though she won’t have to spend any time before bars if she fulfills her probation and DUI school obligations).
Diane Bondareff / AP Images for Hidden Valley Lunch Break for Schools
In definitely the most bizarre DUI case of the summer, Grammy Award-winning country singer Randy Travis was arrested this month in Texas after crashing his car—and allegedly was naked when cops arrived at the crash scene. After threatening to shoot and kill the officers who were arresting him (racking up additional obstruction and retaliation felony charges for himself), Travis was brought into a police station (still unclothed) with cuts on his face and a black eye. The 53-year-old singer was booked and released overnight, after posting $21,500 bond.
Grayson County Sheriff’s Office via Getty Images
It took only two nights after signing his new three-year, $9.5 million contract with the New York Knicks for Jason Kidd to crash his Cadillac Escalade into a telephone pole in the Hamptons. Kidd had been at a club celebrating before the crash, and allegedly had to be carried out by friends. Ironically, Kidd’s antics reportedly ended up cutting cable service to Cablevision customers in the area (James Dolan is both Cablevision’s CEO and the Knicks’ part-owner.) The 39-year-old basketball star was arraigned on a misdemeanor DWI charge and released on his own recognizance.
Southampton Town Police / AP Photo
Once a bad boy, always a bad boy. Willie Hantz, famous for getting kicked off the reality series Big Brother for allegedly attacking one of his costars, was arrested on suspicion of drunk driving in late July, only days after he was booted from the show. According to TMZ, Hantz was found in the driver’s seat of his yellow Camaro—then opened the door and tried fleeing police, but was apprehended after a “very short pursuit.” Hantz was released from custody on $750 bond.
Lafayette Parish Sheriff's Office via Getty Images
Anthony Henderson, better known by the stage name he uses when performing with rap group Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, Krayzie Bone, was arrested in L.A. on suspicion of drunk driving in July during a routine traffic stop. Police asked Henderson to take a Breathalyzer test, which indicated his blood alcohol content at 0.10, above the legal 0.08 limit. It was the rapper’s first-ever drunk driving arrest and he was released from jail the next morning.
David Livingston / Getty Images
Everyone loves Taylor Swift. Well, everyone except George Boedecker, apparently. The founder of the questionable footwear known as Crocs allegedly was found passed out in his Porsche by Colorado police earlier this month. When confronted, Boedecker allegedly insisted that his “batshit crazy” girlfriend had been driving the car. When cops looked around for this theoretical girlfriend and found no one, Boedecker reportedly explained that she was a really famous singer and asked if the policemen were familiar with Taylor Swift, who supposedly was hiding in a nearby yard. When police then asked for the 51-year-old’s address, he responded with, “I have 17 fucking homes.” According to TMZ, paramedics described Boedecker as “drunk as crap.”
Edward Le Poulin / Corbis
