JUST IN: Tiger Woods Gets Five-Year License Suspension After Changing Plea in Rollover Crash

(Martin County Sheriff’s Office via AP)

Tiger Woods pleaded guilty Wednesday to reckless driving and refusing to submit to a lawful test stemming from his March rollover crash in Florida, accepting a five-year suspension of his driver’s license.

Woods had initially pleaded not guilty following his arrest after the crash on Jupiter Island, waiving his arraignment and demanding a jury trial.

The golf legend entered the plea at the Martin County Courthouse after arriving alongside girlfriend Vanessa Trump, the ex-wife of President Donald Trump’s eldest son, Donald Trump Jr.

Under the plea agreement, Woods pleaded no contest to reduced charges of reckless driving and refusing to submit to a lawful test. His driver’s license was suspended for five years and he was ordered to pay $1,500 in fines. He was also found guilty of careless driving, a moving violation.

Woods was arrested on March 27 after authorities said his SUV struck a trailer being towed by a truck before rolling onto its side. According to an arrest affidavit, he told investigators he had been looking down at his cellphone and adjusting the radio and failed to notice the truck slowing ahead of him.

A sheriff’s deputy described Woods as “sweating profusely” following the crash and said his movements appeared “lethargic and slow.” A breathalyzer test found no evidence of alcohol in his system, according to Martin County Sheriff John Budensiek, but Woods declined to provide urine or blood samples for drug testing.

Authorities said two hydrocodone pills were subsequently discovered in Woods’ pants pocket. Prosecutors obtained his medical and prescription records as part of their investigation.

Days after his arrest, Woods announced he was stepping away from golf for a “period of time to seek treatment” and subsequently spent six weeks at a treatment facility in Switzerland before leaving in June. Vanessa, who shares five children with Trump Jr., has also undergone treatment for breast cancer this year. Woods briefly returned from treatment in May to support her after she disclosed the diagnosis.

The case marked Woods’ second arrest on suspicion of DUI. In 2017, police found him asleep behind the wheel of a running vehicle in Florida.

New: The Mediaite One-Sheet "Newsletter of Newsletters"
Your daily summary and analysis of what the many, many media newsletters are saying and reporting. Subscribe now!