Kiefer Sutherland is going to jail if the plea agreement his lawyers worked out earlier today with the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office on a DUI charge is accepted by a judge.
Sutherland, the star of Fox drama “24” was stopped by police after making an illegal U-Turn in West LA on the morning of September 25. Sutherland was arrested after he tested above .08 and released after posting $25,000 bail.
Following the arrest, prosecutors told Access Hollywood, that the believed Kiefer’s arrest constituted a probation violation for a 2004 DUI conviction.
Honorable Stuart Rice, Site Judge of the LA Superior Court presided over a meeting between Sutherland’s lawyers and prosecutors on Tuesday. As a result, a plea agreement was reached that would send the Canadian actor to jail for a total of 48 days.
In court papers obtained by Access Hollywood, the sentence recommendation asks a Judge to send Kiefer to jail for 18 days. He would begin serving the sentence on December 21, meaning his Christmas and New Year’s Eve, would be behind bars.
Additionally, the plea agreement asks the judge to sentence the actor to an additional 30 days in jail or at “an acceptable City Jail facility.”
Kiefer would not have to serve his sentences consecutively. Instead he would, according to the court documents, be able to leave jail after the first stint, which ends on January 7, 2008. He would have to return to jail or an acceptable City Jail facility for the additional 30 days, before July 1, 2008.
It was unclear from the court papers if Kiefer’s jail schedule was directly related to his “24” shooting schedule.
In addition to the jail time, if the judge accepts the plea agreement, Kiefer will be placed on 60 months of probation and ordered to pay a $510 fine. He will also be required to complete an 18-month alcohol education program and attend six months of alcohol therapy sessions by August 1, 2008.
He also must refrain from driving until May 9, 2008.
The Judge will rule on the plea agreement December 21, 2007.
Sutherland issued a statement Tuesday evening.
“I’m very disappointed in myself for the poor judgment I exhibited recently, and I’m deeply sorry for the disappointment and distress this has caused my family, friends and co-workers on ‘24’ and at 20th Century Fox. I appreciate the support and concern that has been extended to me these last weeks both personally and professionally,” his statement read.
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