Michael Phelps Will NOT Be Charged In The Wake Of His Bong Photo Scandal
Despite the fact that Richland County, SC sheriff Leon Lott found enough evidence to arrest 8 “regular folk” on various charges stemming from that infamous photo of Michael Phelps puffin’ on that big-ass marijuana bong, he has NOT deemed it necessary to arrest and charge Michael Phelps with any crime whatsoever … even tho PHELPS IS THE ONE PHOTOGRAPHED with DRUG PARAPHERNALIA in hand and it was HIS PHOTO that caused this scandal to erupt in the first place:
A South Carolina sheriff said Monday he was not going to charge swimmer Michael Phelps after a photo of the 14-time gold medalist showed him smoking from a marijuana pipe. Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott said he couldn’t ignore the photo but defended his investigation. “Michael Phelps is truly an American hero … but even with his star status, he is still obligated to obey the laws of our state,” Lott said. The photo showed Phelps smoking from a marijuana pipe at a party in November when he visited the University of South Carolina. Phelps has called his judgment bad and said he would learn from his mistake. USA Swimming suspended Phelps for three months in the wake of the photo, and Kellogg Co. said it would not renew its endorsement deal with him. The photo surfaced in a British newspaper, News of the World, on Feb. 1. The swimmer, who won a record eight gold medals at the Beijing Games, did not dispute its authenticity. News of the World said the picture was taken during a party while Phelps was visiting the university. During that trip, he attended one of the school’s football games and received a big ovation when introduced to the crowd. The party occurred nearly three months after the Olympics while Phelps was taking a break from training, and his actions should have no impact on the eight golds he won at Beijing. He has never tested positive for banned substances. This isn’t the first embarrassing episode for Phelps after an Olympic triumph. In 2004, a few months removed from winning six gold and two bronze medals in Athens, the swimmer was arrested on a drunken driving charge at age 19. He pleaded guilty and apologized for the mistake.
I’m sure those 8 people who WERE arrested after this incident are thrilled that Phelps, an American hero, managed to evade arrest. Utterly absurd. The disparity in fairness of treatment between the famous and the unfamous is SO BLATANT in this case … I’m kinda disgusted. That anyone was even arrested in the first place, just grosses me right out. Leon Lott does not deserve to be allowed to be a meter maid, let alone a sheriff. I hope the folks in Richland County hold HIM accountable for his actions. I, for one, would not want him to exercise any authority in any jurisdiction that I lived in. What a sad ending to a dumb story.
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February 16th, 2009 at 12:45 pm
So. Stupid.
February 16th, 2009 at 12:51 pm
They didn’t charge him because they can’t
February 16th, 2009 at 12:54 pm
AND because he’s Michael Phelps.
February 16th, 2009 at 1:01 pm
What are they going to charge him with? Taking a picture. You have to be caught in the act or in possession of. We don’t know the whole story of the other kids and they have yet to be charged and may not be. It’s all hear say.
February 16th, 2009 at 1:11 pm
Honestly, i dont believe they could charge him with anything anyway. The people that were arrested for it were people that were at the party who were in personal posession of weed or paraphernalia, with an intent to sell or distribute, or allowing this to happen in their place of residence.
All he did was partake in the marijuana, but it was not in his personal posession and as far as we all know, he did not buy, or sell any, or physically take any of it with him on his person.
As for the picture, that really isnt proof of anything. His lawyers could dispute that as him “pretending” to use it, or just holding it up to his mouth to be funny. I mean we know he all did it… but with only the eyewitness testimony of those kids who were also smoking, had it in their posession, or were selling it, who arent exactly credible witnesses. Even if some sort of charges were brought against him, they could be dismissed easily.
For what it’s worth, i think it’s ridiculous that any of these people had charges brought against them. The “war on drugs” is laughable.
February 16th, 2009 at 1:12 pm
How can they be charged but he can’t. That’s completely ludacris
February 16th, 2009 at 1:20 pm
that sheriff is a complete jackass
February 16th, 2009 at 1:27 pm
Richland County Sheriff Leon Lett said that after a full investigation into the November party at which Phelps was photographed, touching off a controversy that led to a three-month ban, there was not enough evidence to charge anyone.
“Having thoroughly investigated this matter, we do not believe we have enough evidence to prosecute anyone that was present at the November party,” Lett said.
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5ivLiTH6sf6m2D-pHnkSCw_yi0kEA
February 16th, 2009 at 1:29 pm
since they charged these poor kids way after the party even took place…how can they know who to charge with what…they have no way of knowing who had weed on them that night…I could see charging the parents who own the house with neglect or something but these poor kids were just having some harmless fun and I don’t even know how they could possibly know who to arrest and what to charge them with….this whole story is disgusting….and if I were one of those 8 kids…I’d be bullshit that I got in trouble over a stupid picture only because the kid in said picture was famous….so dumb! Those cops have nothing better to do than arrest these kids for a party? That si just pathetic and that cop should be ashamed of himself….if I was one of those kids parents I’d be so pissed too!
February 16th, 2009 at 1:39 pm
The person to blame, to be quite honest, is the asshole who sold the picture to the media. What a jerk!!!
February 16th, 2009 at 1:39 pm
I totally agree Trent. Our judicial system is such a MESS. It’s NEVER about justice. It’s about who has the most money…. Leon Lott, I have a feeling your going to be paying for this for a long time to come. Someone from S.C. please leave a flamming turd on his doorstep for me. Thanks.
February 16th, 2009 at 2:03 pm
Seriously? How could they even prove it was marijuana in the bong he was using? And I believe you are being far too critical on Michael Phelps. You, and many others, hold him to an inhuman level. He is human and he will have fun and make mistakes. I think the stress people put on celebrities is far too critical and when they do something that many people do in their lives they act as though they committed a murder. People treating him how they do is ridiculous. Let him make mistakes and be human.
February 16th, 2009 at 3:05 pm
I read this while myself and everyone else in SC hides their face in shame.
Can’t we do something right, for once?
February 16th, 2009 at 3:16 pm
you CANNOT be charged with drug use with a picture
actually you can’t be charged with drug use at all, just possession
i agree that it’s weird that those other kids got busted, but it’s not Micheal Phelps goddamn fault.
Why don’t you get off his back? Since when are you the morality police
February 16th, 2009 at 4:43 pm
It’s those dumb ass kids fault for allowing the pictures to leak in the first place.
February 16th, 2009 at 5:16 pm
^LOL AGREED.
what fucking douchbags.
February 16th, 2009 at 5:24 pm
It’s a fucking bong! so effing what?? you are such a prude for a liberal gay guy
February 16th, 2009 at 6:11 pm
@Ian – I’m a prude? What are you basing your assertion on? My beef is that others were arrested while Phelps was not. Nothing prudish about a disparity of justice.
February 16th, 2009 at 6:29 pm
Wooo! South Carolina in the house!!! God, get me out of this state and that county! Leon Lott has been sheriff for a bajillion years and runs unopposed.
February 16th, 2009 at 7:06 pm
Let me start off by asserting that I AM NOT a fan of Michael Phelps. I do not follow swimming. I did not even watch the Olympics. I’m no lawyer, but I definitely know that there is no way that charges against him would ever hold up in court. I have still YET to see a picture that clearly proves that Phelps was even there. I’ve been saying it for weeks that the person in the picture looks a whole lot like Jason from The Hills, but no one can prove that either. Also, no one can prove that “Phelps” was even smoking pot out of that device. Go into any smoke store and you’ll see that those devices are in glass cases that are clearly marked, “FOR TOBACCO USE ONLY.” Any genius could realize that they’re not only used for tobacco, but unless he was arrested while smoking pot out of that device (proven after testing), a picture of Phelps clearly paying another to purchase a substance, or even catching Phelps with a controlled substance on his person, he is NOT in the wrong. It has been stated that the others that were arrested DID have substances on them or were known to have been involved with the purchasing of illegal substances.
To say that Phelps is only getting off because he has money is rubbish. Do celebrities get off all the time? YES! However, in this instance, there is no LEGAL EVIDENCE putting him at fault. I know this blog is meant only for your own opinion, Trent, but to continuously make him out to be a despicable creature is utter nonsense. Like others have said, he is human. We are human. Nothing can be proven in this case, and that’s that.
February 16th, 2009 at 7:08 pm
Furthermore, is it possible that he is getting away with something illegal this time? Sure it’s possible, but have we so soon forgotten Mr. OJ Simpson? We must not forget that Karma can be a b*t#h!
February 16th, 2009 at 9:01 pm
Utterly absurd is an understatement! I soo agree with you on this Trent. I personally think that this story has been blown WAY out of portion. To arrest someone would wasn’t even at the party, and NOT arrest someone would WAS at the party (and clearly smoking something from a pipe) is beyond ridiculous. Can they even get away something like this? The favoritism is blatantly obvious. Maybe the sheriff is up for re-election, and is trying to make an example out of Michael.
February 16th, 2009 at 11:07 pm
Mmmyeah I’m just glad it’s not CA letting the celebrity-folk get off easy.
February 17th, 2009 at 11:37 am
What do you not get about the law re: drug arrest? He must be caught IN POSSESSION or PURCHASING an illegal drug. This photo shows neither, so they cannot arrest him. That is the law. If you have beef with the law then take it up in DC.
sounds like the other people were arrested for reason. This photo proves nothing. That is why he’s “getting off easy” not because he is a celeb. And geez louise, other stars are caught on all sorts of illegal drugs and no one thinks worse of them!?! wtf mate? play fair.
February 17th, 2009 at 3:58 pm
@Jen who said “His lawyers could dispute that as him “pretending” to use it, or just holding it up to his mouth to be funny” sure, right but we can arrest 8 others days later and we can harrass and talk about Miley Cyrus for eons because she made Asian faces to be funny. Let’s get our priorities straight here…mkay.
February 17th, 2009 at 4:24 pm
a picture cannot be used as evidence for drug possession.
and Ashlee, Trent and other celebrity bloggers (like Perez) were the ones bitching on and on about Miley for ten posts