Friday, August 13, 2010

Rip Torn request for probation refused by Conn. judge

Rip Torn, an Emmy Award-winning actor, could possibly be heading to the jail house. On Wednesday, a judge ruled against his request for a special probation program, stating the charges are too serious to qualify him. Earlier this year in January, Rip Torn was arrested for breaking into a bank in Connecticut, armed and intoxicated.

Criminal charges on Rip Torn

Rip Torn, whose real name is Elmore Rual Torn, has had troubles in the past with alcohol-related incidents. Salisbury, Conn., is where the latest event took place, where he was arrested not just for breaking into a Litchfield Bancorp branch office during closing hours, but for carrying a firearm without a permit, also. Police had responded to the alarm at the bank where a window had been broken. Holding a loaded .22-caliber pistol, the Men in Black actor was found wandering inside the facility. Torn had a blood-alcohol level of 0.203, as outlined by court documents, which is nearly 3 times the legal limit for Connecticut drivers.

Torn had pleaded not guilty to second-degree criminal trespassing, carrying a weapon without a permit, carrying a weapon while intoxicated and third-degree criminal mischief, according to the Associated Press.

Other alcohol-related incidents

In January of 2004, Torn was arrested within the Big Apple after his vehicle crashed into a taxi. Aired all over television news was a fuming Rip Torn yelling at police officers and refusing to take a breathalyzer test. He was acquitted from all charges that year in October. Just two years later, in December of 2006, the actor crashed into a tractor trailer in North Salem, New York, and he was again arrested for drunk driving. He pleaded guilty, had his driver’s license revoked for 90 days and was ordered to pay a $ 380 fine.

Judge rejects Rip Torn’s special probation request

Too bad for Rip Torn, Litchfield Superior Court Judge James Ginocchio has ruled the charges placed on Rip Torn, 79, following the January Connecticut bank break-in are too serious to qualify him for the probation program called accelerated rehabilitation. The fact that Torn was nevertheless in a court-ordered alcohol education program from a previous DUI charge at the time of the bank break-in certainly doesn’t help his situation. His lawyer, Thomas Waterfall, has requested a court-ordered evaluation of Torn’s alcohol dependency problems. Depending on the results, Torn might be ordered to undergo a state-monitored treatment for up to two years before any of the charges can be dropped.

More on this topic

Yahoo News

news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100811/ap_on_en_tv/us_people_rip_torn_12



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