Tatum O’Neal Arraigned on Drug Charges
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Tatum O’Neal swore she was done with drugs.
The Oscar-winning former child actress proclaimed she was sober as she promoted her 2004 tell-all memoir, cobbled her acting career back together, and even offered advice to misbehaving pop star Britney Spears.
Ms. O’Neal’s arrest Sunday on charges of buying cocaine in her downtown Manhattan neighborhood suggests her struggle with addiction may not be over.
Ms. O’Neal, 44, looked tired and said nothing as she was arraigned yesterday in Manhattan Criminal Court on a misdemeanor charge of possession of a controlled substance. The actress, the daughter of screen star Ryan O’Neal, entered no plea and was released without bail until a July 28 court date.
Prosecutors are recommending drug treatment for the actress, who detailed her dependency on heroin and cocaine in her best-selling memoir, “A Paper Life.”
Her lawyer, Robert Marinelli, declined to comment yesterday. Her manager and publicist did not immediately return telephone calls after her court appearance, while her agent’s office referred calls to her publicist.
The arrest was another low point in a life that has included many. Her childhood, she has said, was a Hollywood horror show. She went on to years of drug abuse, public feuding with her father, and a searing child custody fight with her ex-husband, tennis star John McEnroe. Her acting career — which had netted her an Oscar at age 10 — vaporized.
But Ms. O’Neal determinedly rebuilt it in recent years, telling the New York Times last year that she called and sent e-mails to her agent daily and accepted every role offered. She appeared in independent films, played guest roles on such shows as “Law and Order: Criminal Intent” and “8 Simple Rules … for Dating My Teenage Daughter” and took a spin on “Dancing with the Stars.”
Her efforts solidified into a recurring role as hard-drinking Maggie Gavin in the FX cable channel’s television drama “Rescue Me.”
Police found two bags of cocaine in Ms. O’Neal’s right front pants pocket when she was arrested around 7:30 p.m. Sunday on the Lower East Side, according to a court complaint. Officers saw Ms. O’Neal accept the drug from a man during a routine drug sweep, police said. Initial reports suggested she had bought crack-cocaine, but police later said it was powder cocaine.
