- Fri Jul 26, 2002 6:26 pm
#17800
found out stuff about it, it was both, she crashed a car and was several times over the limit plus 4 syringes were found and 25mg of cocaine.
raided this from an American news site
Former "Baywatch" beauty Yasmine Bleeth pleaded guilty to a cocaine-possession charge in a deal that could leave her with no criminal record if she completes probation.
Under a plea bargain with the Wayne County Prosecutor's office, Bleeth pleaded guilty Friday to possessing less than 25 grams of a controlled substance, cocaine, and to driving while impaired. Another possession charge is to be dismissed.
The actress would serve two years of probation, which includes a drug screening evaluation and undergo regular drug tests.
"I was driving under the influence of narcotics. Cocaine, your honor," Bleeth told Judge Karen Fort Hood, who scheduled sentencing for Jan. 9.
Prosecutor Christopher Coyle asked Bleeth if she had cocaine in the car on Sept. 12, and she said, "Yes."
The drug count is a four-year felony. The driving count could carry a term of 93 days in jail.
First-time drug offenders in Michigan can have their records expunged if they complete probation. A presentencing report is expected to determine that the 33-year-old Bleeth is eligible for that treatment, Coyle said.
"She was treated with no favoritism. She got a sentence that anyone would have got. This is a woman with a drug problem and no prior record," he said.
"The important thing for us is that she get that mandatory drug treatment. We want to help her with her drug problem, any defendant in her situation," Coyle said.
Defense lawyer Jerry Sabbota said Bleeth has been in outpatient drug treatment since her arrest. She hopes to return to California and continue her career, he said.
Bleeth spent the night in jail in Romulus, near Detroit Metropolitan Airport, after patrol officers found what they suspected was cocaine in her purse during their investigation of a car accident on Sept. 12. Police said charges also stemmed from a subsequent search of Bleeth's hotel room.
Police said Bleeth drove off Interstate 94 and onto the freeway's median strip. In the vehicle with her was her friend, Paul Cerrito, of suburban Detroit.
Cerrito, 31, was charged with one count of possession of less than 25 grams of cocaine and a count of being a habitual offender-third offense. He faces a court hearing next week.
Police said Cerrito and Bleeth were in Michigan to visit his relatives.
dave benson phillips