Downey Jr. Enters Drug Center
06:06 PM ET 08/03/00
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Actor Robert Downey Jr. checked into a
residential drug treatment facility as part of a ``self-imposed
recovery program'' after his release from prison, his lawyer said
Thursday. Attorney Robert Waters said Downey decided to return to Walden
House, a facility where he had lived previously while trying to
fight his drug addiction.
``He plans to maintain a life of sobriety,'' Waters said. He
called it a transitional living arrangement for Downey after a year
in prison.
Before he went to jail, Downey spent 53 days in a drug rehab
center as part of a 15-month sentence for misdemeanor convictions
of driving under the influence, carrying an unloaded weapon in his
car and being under the influence.
An appeals court ruled Wednesday he had served enough time to
fulfill his three-year sentence for probation violation, crediting
him for time he had served in rehabilitation. He was released on
$5,000 bail.
Downey is looking forward to making films again, Waters said. ``He's looking forward to going back to work. He's open to
offers of work, and he wants to meet with people,'' he said. ``He's
a terrific actor and a gifted individual.''
Waters said Downey has been approached by people who want him to
tell his own story in a book or a movie, but ``he hasn't considered
it.''
While in the drug-treatment facility at the state prison at
Corcoran, Downey's condition improved so much that he was actually
counseling other inmates, the attorney said.
``He's in great shape, and he has a tremendously positive
outlook,'' Waters said.
The son of film director Robert Downey earned an Oscar
nomination for his work in the title role in ``Chaplin,'' the 1992
screen biography of the comedian. Other film credits include ``Less
Than Zero,'' ``Natural Born Killers,'' ``One Night Stand,'' ``Two
Girls and a Guy'' and ``U.S. Marshals.''
The actor's legal troubles date to June 1996, when he was
stopped for speeding on the Pacific Coast Highway and authorities
found cocaine, heroin and a pistol in his vehicle.
A month later Downey was found passed out on a child's bed in a
neighbor's home. Three days later, he was arrested for leaving a
recovery center.
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