Al Michaels was slurring his speech before DUI arrest, police say
Santa Monica police smelled alcohol and heard “slurred speech” when they pulled over legendary sportscaster Al Michaels late Friday, and later arrested him on suspicion of drunk driving, authorities told The Times.
Michaels, who broadcasts Sunday Night Football on NBC, was driving east in the 700 block of Pico Boulevard around 9:30 p.m. Friday when two officers on motorcycles saw him make an illegal U-turn, Sgt. Richard Lewis said.
Lewis said the officers were at a gas station when they observed the illegal U-turn, moving from eastbound Pico Boulevard to westbound Pico Boulevard. A DUI checkpoint had been set up nearby in the 1800 block of Lincoln Boulevard.
“They pulled him over, detected the smell of alcoholic beverage, slurred speech, they did [field sobriety tests], arrested him, and then he was booked.”
Lewis said the department does not release the blood alcohol concentration of those arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, but added that Michaels was arrested on a violation of the vehicle code that includes driving with a blood alcohol content of 0.08 or greater.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department online inmate database shows Michaels, 68, was arrested around 9:58 p.m. Friday and booked by 11:07 p.m. The records show he was released Saturday around 4:15 a.m.
He is scheduled to appear in court June 26.
Greg Hughes, a spokesman for NBC Sports, told the Associated Press that the network had been “in contact with Michaels.” Hughes declined to elaborate.
[For the record, 11:50 a.m., April 22: An earlier version of this post said Michaels was released on $5,000 bail. Records indicate bail was set at $5,000, but a sheriff’s spokeswoman said Michaels was cited and released on his own recognizance.]
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