This combination of undated photo provided by the City of Atlanta Department of Corrections shows Reese Witherspoon, left, her husband James Toth. The Oscar-winning actress was arrested on a disorderly conduct charge after a state trooper said she wouldn’t stay in the car while Toth was given a field sobriety test in Atlanta. (AP Photo/City of Atlanta Department of Corrections)
ATLANTA— Actress Reese Witherspoon recalled that she panicked, said some “crazy things” and even claimed to be pregnant the night she was arrested in Atlanta on a disorderly conduct charge.
During an interview Thursday on ABC’s “Good Morning America,” Witherspoon repeatedly apologized for her behavior during the April 19 traffic stop. A police report states that Witherspoon asked a Georgia state trooper, “Do you know my name?” and added, “You’re about to find out who I am.”
In her first sit-down interview about the arrest, the Oscar-winning actress told ABC’s George Stephanopoulos that she had “one too many” glasses of wine, and panicked after she and her husband were pulled over.
“I have no idea what I was saying that night,” she said. “I literally panicked. I said all kinds of crazy things. I told them I was pregnant. I’m not pregnant.”
Witherspoon, 37, was arrested after the trooper said she wouldn’t stay in the car while her husband, Hollywood agent Jim Toth, was being given a field sobriety test.
A dash-cam video of the arrest posted by the TMZ website on Thursday shows a state trooper repeatedly telling Witherspoon to get back inside the car while he speaks to Toth. She initially tells him she is pregnant and needs to use the restroom.
At another point, she approaches the trooper as he reminds her of his directive to stay in the car. When she defies his warnings to immediately return to the vehicle, he starts handcuffing the actress and she becomes irate.
“This is harassment! You’re harassing me as an American citizen! I have done nothing against the law!” she says.
After more words are exchanged, the trooper leads her away off-screen, presumably to the police car, while Toth looks on.
When the trooper returns, Toth tells him, “I had nothing to do with that.”
“I know,” the trooper responds.
Toth was charged with drunken driving and was due in court May 23. Witherspoon faced a May 22 court hearing on the disorderly conduct charge.
Two lawyers for Witherspoon, one in Los Angeles and one in Atlanta, did not immediately return calls from The Associated Press seeking comment Thursday.
“There are so many lessons learned,” she said.
“When a police officer tells you to stay in the car, you stay in the car,” she said. “I learned that for sure. I learned a lot.”