Olympian Michael Phelps arrested on DUI charge
Michael Phelps swam in a 100-meter butterfly heat at the Santa Clara International Grand Prix swim meet in Santa Clara
BALTIMORE >> Police arrested Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps on a DUI charge early Tuesday, and officials say he was speeding and failed field sobriety tests when officers pulled him over.
Phelps, 29, was charged with driving under the influence, excessive speed and crossing double lane lines in the Fort McHenry Tunnel on Interstate 95 in Baltimore, according to the Maryland Transportation Authority.
A Maryland Transportation Authority Police officer was using radar about 1:40 a.m. when Phelps’ white 2014 Land Rover came through at 84 mph in a 45-mph zone, the transportation authority said in a statement. The officer stopped Phelps just beyond the tunnel’s toll plaza.
"Mr. Phelps was identified as the driver by his driver’s license and appeared to be under the influence," the statement said. "He was unable to perform satisfactorily a series of standard field sobriety tests."
The statement said Phelps was cooperative throughout the process. Phelps was arrested and taken to a transportation authority station, from which he was later released.
Representatives for Phelps did not respond to calls for comment Tuesday.
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This is Phelps’ second DUI charge in Maryland. The first charge was in 2004 on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, and he received 18 months’ probation and a $250 fine. Phelps also was required to deliver a presentation on alcohol awareness to students at three high schools.
At the time, Phelps told the judge in a packed courtroom: "I recognize the seriousness of this mistake. I’ve learned from this mistake and will continue learning from this mistake for the rest of my life."
In 2009, a British tabloid published a photo of Phelps using a marijuana pipe in South Carolina. A sheriff said there wasn’t evidence to charge Phelps with a crime, but USA Swimming suspended him for three months. Sponsor Kellogg Co. dropped him almost immediately, although Subway stayed with him.
In the wake of the photo’s release, Phelps said in a statement it was that he "used bad judgment and it’s a mistake I won’t make again."
Phelps, a native of Baltimore County, is the most decorated Olympian of all time with 22 Olympic medals.
