Former Raiders QB pleads guilty to meth possession

Newport Beach resident and former football star Todd Marinovich pleaded guilty to charges of felony possession of a controlled substance and misdemeanor counts of unauthorized possession of a hypodermic needle and resisting a police officer, district prosecutors said.

Marinovich, 38, received five years’ probation and a one-year stretch at Spencer Recovery Centers in Laguna Beach. If the case had gone to trial, he faced three years in prison if found guilty of the charges related to his most recent drug-related arrest.

Newport Beach police found the former L.A. Raiders and USC quarterback skateboarding near the Newport Beach Pier on Aug. 26.

Police said they tried to stop him, but he ran a few blocks to a bathroom, holding a guitar case.

Officers found about a gram of methamphetamine, a metal spoon and a hypodermic needle inside of the case, police said.

According to prosecutors, Marinovich has been convicted of four drug-related crimes.

— Kelly Strodl