Tiffany Haddish has entered a plea deal and pleaded no contest to reckless driving, successfully avoiding DUI charges stemming from her arrest in Los Angeles over last year’s Thanksgiving holiday, as reported by the Los Angeles District Attorney’s office to PEOPLE.
The actress faced two misdemeanor charges, which were dropped as part of the plea deal she took in November. Haddish appeared in person to enter a no contest plea to a violation of Vehicle Code sections 23103 and 23103.5, commonly known as a “wet reckless.” Her attorney, Alex Spiro, clarified that it was a simple vehicle code violation, not a DUI, and expressed Haddish’s desire to move forward.
In response to the plea deal, Haddish has been placed on summary probation for one year and ordered to complete 40 hours of community service. Additionally, she is required to enroll in Mothers Against Drunk Driving’s Victim Impact Program, attend a HAM (Hospital and Morgue) Program, an SB1176 driver’s education program, and pay standard fines and fees. She was also given a “Watson” admonition, acknowledging the potential harm of her actions.
Haddish’s legal issues began when she was arrested on Thanksgiving weekend after allegedly falling asleep behind the wheel of her Tesla. The Beverly Hills Police Department found her at approximately 5:45 a.m. on Nov. 24, leading to charges of driving under the influence of alcohol and driving with .08% blood alcohol content.
Notably, her initial not guilty plea in late December had a pretrial hearing scheduled for Feb. 14. However, the recent plea deal concludes the legal proceedings, and as of now, there are no future scheduled court appearances.
In a separate incident in January 2022, Haddish faced another arrest on suspicion of DUI in Georgia. Georgia prosecutors sought to modify her bond conditions following the California arrest. The recent resolution of the Thanksgiving 2023 DUI case marks a significant step towards putting these legal troubles behind the actress.