Daniel Baldwin is cleared of car theft

Actor Daniel Baldwin, who co-starred in the TV cop show “Homicide: Life on the Street,” has gotten some good news from prosecutors: A car-theft case against him has been dropped.

The 46-year-old entertainer, a member of the acting family that includes brothers Alec, Stephen and William Baldwin, was arrested in November on suspicion of stealing a sport utility vehicle from a friend in Aliso Viejo.

Authorities traced the vehicle to a Santa Monica motel parking lot, using a signal from the SUV’s security system, two days after it was reported stolen, and Baldwin was arrested when he was seen getting into the vehicle.

He was booked on suspicion of the unlawful taking of a vehicle and receiving stolen property. But the SUV’s owner later insisted that he had given Baldwin permission to drive the vehicle and that the theft report resulted from a misunderstanding.

“The evidence didn’t support us going forward with the case,” said Farrah Emami, a spokeswoman for the Orange County district attorney’s office.