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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Wednesday, December 14, 2005

Troubles on road could land 'Lost' star in prison

By Peter Boylan
Advertiser Staff Writer

The recent traffic troubles for "Lost" star Michelle Rodriguez may earn her 18 months in a California prison if Los Angeles city prosecutors find she violated the terms of her probation in Los Angeles County.

Rodriguez, who plays Ana Lucia on the award-winning ABC drama, was ordered by a Wahiawa district judge yesterday to pay $357 in fines in connection with a Nov. 1 traffic stop, in which Rodriguez was cited for driving 83 mph in a 55 mph zone. She did not appear before the judge but her attorney, Steve Barta, entered a no-contest plea.

Barta declined to comment yesterday.

Rodriguez is free on $500 bail after she and fellow "Lost" star Cynthia Watros were arrested Nov. 24 for drunken driving in Kailua. They are scheduled to appear in Kane'ohe District Court Dec. 29.

A spokesman for the Los Angeles city attorney's office yesterday said they have requested Rodriguez's case files from the Honolulu Police Department and the city prosecutor's office.

"We'll be looking at all incidents and reports in review (of her probation)," said Frank Mateljan, spokesman for the Los Angeles city attorney's office. "We'll make a decision whether or not her actions constituted a violation of her probation conditions."

Rodriguez was sentenced to three years' probation and ordered to undergo a 30-day substance-abuse treatment program after pleading no contest to three misdemeanors in 2003 related to two different traffic incidents in Los Angeles, according to records filed in Los Angeles Superior Court.

The charges involved hit and run, property damage, driving with a suspended license and driving under the influence with a blood-alcohol level above .08, the records show.

Yesterday's fine was tacked on to $300 in unpaid fines stemming from an Oct. 20 traffic stop in which Rodriguez was caught driving 90 mph in a 35 mph zone. She also was cited for driving without proof of insurance, and a warrant was issued for her arrest in that case after she failed to appear Nov. 17, according to the Wahiawa court clerk's office.

Rodriguez did not appear in court, but did show up at the clerk's office to pay the fines.

Reach Peter Boylan at pboylan@honoluluadvertiser.com.