AndrewBlakeNov 4, 2017
Portland, Texas – Actor Lou Diamond Phillips was arrested Friday on suspicious of driving while intoxicated when he got out of his car and approached an officer that was on a traffic stop.
He had stopped to ask for directions to the area in which he graduated from high school.
Phillips, who is best known for his role as Ritchie Valens in La Bamba and is currently starring in the TV show Longmire, graduated from Flour Bluff High School but asked police for directions to the Flour Bluff area in Corpus Christi, according to USA Today.
The officer suspected that Phillips was intoxicated and called another officer to assist, according to Chief Cory.
Phillips was given field sobriety tests, which showed that he was impaired. He was arrested and taken to the San Patricio County Jail. Chief Cory said Phillips’ alcohol level was 0.2 percent, which is more than double the legal limit of 0.08 in Texas, USA Today reported.
Phillips spent several hours in jail and was released at 11 am on $2,500 bail, according to jail officials.
Chief Cory said Phillips’ demeanor was “polite and cordial.”
“It’s just another DWI arrest for us,” Cory said. “It doesn’t matter who an individual is or what their status is in life.”
Phillips was raised in Texas and was scheduled to appear Friday at a historical event in Corpus Christi.
“It was a lapse in judgment, obviously. I did not think I was in that state because I approached the cop,” Phillips later told TV KIII 3 News. “I thought I was fine. He obviously thought otherwise. It was a mistake. It was stupid of me. I regret it. It will never happen again.”