Sam Shepard, the actor and Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, was arrested in Santa Fe, New Mexico Monday night on suspicion of drunk driving.
Police said that he was arrested outside a restaurant, reports The Associated Press. He told an officer that he had two tequila drinks. The officer smelled alcohol and Shepard’s eyes were bloodshot. The actor refused a breathalyzer test, but failed a sobriety test.
Police spokeswoman Andrea Dobyns told Reuters that police were called to the restaurant by concerned staff, who saw a man try to leave in a pickup truck. However, the truck’s emergency brake was engaged.
Shepard spent the night at the Santa Fe County Jail, where he was booked on aggravated driving while intoxicated.
Shepard was nominated for an Oscar for The Right Stuff. His recent film credits include Mud, Black Hawk Down, August: Osage County and Netflix’s Bloodline. He won his Pulitzer for the play Buried Child.
Reuters notes that he was previously arrested on a drunk driving charge in 2009 in Illinois.
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