Posted on 01/06/2009 9:24:23 AM PST by Daffynition
BANTAM - Film and stage actor Rip Torn was arraigned Monday on drunken driving charges in Bantam Superior Court.
Elmore “Rip” Torn, 77, a Salisbury resident, pleaded not guilty before Judge Cara Eschuk to charges of illegal operation of a motor vehicle while under the influence and failure to drive in the proper lane. Torn is represented by Torrington attorney A. Thomas Waterfall of the firm Smith, Keefe, Moraghan and Waterfall.
Eschuk warned Torn not to drive if his license is suspended. He was scheduled to return to court Jan. 28.
Despite two prior drunken driving arrests in New York, Torn may be eligible for an alcohol education program for first-time offenders in this state. He was acquitted by a jury in a 2004 drunken driving case and, in a second case, pleaded guilty in 2007 to a lesser charge of being ability impaired, according to published reports.
“All I can tell you is that we will review the reports and Mr. Torn and I will meet to discuss his defense options. At this point, I don’t know what they are yet,” Waterfall said Monday.
On Dec. 14, a bartender at the White Hart Inn reportedly served Torn, but apparently noticed he appeared intoxicated as he was leaving the establishment, according to a police report. Torn reportedly refused a ride home and got in his 1994 Subaru Legacy with a Christmas tree tied on top and drove away.
Torn was reportedly driving in the break-down lane on Route 44 when he was stopped by State Police Trooper Ray Dungan at 9:35 p.m. Torn’s eyes were bloodshot and the trooper smelled alcohol, he reported. Torn failed a portion of the field sobriety tests before he gave up, claiming the ground was not level enough.
Torn refused to take the Breathalyzer test, according to police. In the cruiser, Torn used profanity, the trooper said.
“He was cooperative,” Waterfall said. “He seems like a nice older gentleman who has had an exceptional career.”
In a video recorded during Torn’s 2004 arrest, the actor was not cordial with police, telling New York officers they were “f--- out of line” and saying that they should “go to hell.”
Torn’s career, which spans over 50 years of stage and screen roles, includes recent films “Dodgeball”, “Men in Black” and NBC’s comedy series “30 Rock.” Torn, an Emmy award winner, appears in several films that are currently in production, including a feature role with Demi Moore and Ellen Barkin in “Happy Tears,” scheduled to be released later this year, according to the Internet Movie Database Web site.
Menace to de sos-eye-eee-tee!
Another photo for the wall of shame.
He was hysterical in Dodgeball.
“If you can dodge a wrench... you can dodge a ball!”
Torn failed a portion of the field sobriety tests before he gave up, claiming the ground was not level enough.
LOL always worked for me.
Um...apparently he was.
He didn’t get that nickname “Rip” for nothing.
No Zed No! Say it ain’t so!
I think we have the 1st entry in to the Best Looking Celebrity Booking Photos of 2009.
If you can dodge a car...you can dodge a ball.
My how the mighty have fallen.
I like him as an actor but I’m not too comfortable sharing the road with him. I had no idea he lived only a few towns away from me. There are quite a few actors who live in the North West Corner of the state.
Wow, that photo is an ‘8’ on the Nolte scale!
Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea having that Christmas tree tied on top of his vehicle either. Kind of an attention getter. Wait, shouldn’t that be a ‘holiday’ tree! Book em’!
The MSM: too lazy to report so they wait on court records and listen to police scanners.
Enough of the DUI stories.
He was hilarious in that Tom Green movie.
I look far worse most of the time.
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