Lindsay Lohan avoided jail time on Monday after she pleaded no contest to three misdemeanour charges – reckless driving, lying to police officers, and obstructing officers from performing their duties – stemming from a car accident last June.REED SAXON/Reuters
Well, Lindsay Lohan is safe from the courts (for now), but not from the media.
The actress avoided jail time once again after she pleaded no contest on Monday to three misdemeanour charges – reckless driving, lying to police officers, and obstructing officers from performing their duties – stemming from a car accident last June.
Lohan was sentenced to 90 days in lockdown rehabilitation and 30 hours of community labour. She also has to undergo psychotherapy for 18 months.
The media went haywire this morning after word got out that Lohan reportedly skipped her flight Sunday evening, and instead, took a private jet from New York to her Los Angeles court appointment Monday morning.
As a result, she was more than 30 minutes late to her hearing, and upon arrival she was doused in glitter by a bystander.
This "glitter-bomb" incident highlights how the media has treated Lohan in recent years. She has been publicly humiliated and for what? Going out at night? Drinking a little too much? Avoiding jail time?
Whatever the reason, the media has yet again got it wrong.
Creating a frenzy over her tardiness, shaming her for exploring her sexuality and proclaiming the actress has hit rock bottom is unacceptable and quite frankly, rather sexist.
In 2007, 24 actor Kiefer Sutherland was arrested for a misdemeanour DUI after he blew more than twice the legal limit on a breathalyzer. He was released on $25,000 bail.
In 2008, Transformers actor Shia LaBeouf was arrested for drunk driving when his vehicle collided with another. The charges were dropped after the court concluded there wasn't sufficient evidence to press for jail time.
And in May 2012, Lost star Matthew Fox was arrested for DUI. He was sentenced to attend four weeks of alcohol information training.
None of these male celebrities were slammed in tabloids and humiliated, though. They were not mocked online or called a "hot mess" on a regular basis. Instead, they have moved on and have more or less been forgiven in the eyes of the media.
And it's not just TMZ and Perez Hilton shaming Lohan. Last week, fellow celebrity and pop star Justin Bieber made a statement on his Instagram stating, "to those comparing me to Lindsay Lohan look at her 2012 tax statements ;)."
In case anyone has forgotten, Lohan is 26. She's going to party at night, and she's going to make mistakes. Unlike Bieber, who has an army of preteen fans to protect his wrongdoings, Lohan is on her own. Rehabilitation can help her right now – even if it is only a break from the paparazzi for a few months.
Needless to say, at the end of her 90 days, I'm still hoping for a comeback.