Thursday, January 17, 2008
Four male members of the paparazzi were arrested and charged on Wednesday with reckless driving in Mission Hills, California after following Britney Spears back to her mansion. At least four others were also stopped by police, but were not arrested.
According to reports, police witnessed the entire incident saying that a fleet of paparazzi were following Spears at a high rate of speed around 11:20 p.m. PST (UTC-8). They also say they followed her too closely and made unsafe lane changes in order to follow her. Police also say that at least one of cars following Spears, who was driving her car, tried to run her off the road, but she was not able to identify the vehicle or the occupants.
Spears was also stopped by police. They are reported to have verified her identity, and released her. TMZ.com reports that police were checking to see if her license was valid, and was surprised that it was. Spears was not charged with anything and despite the paparazzis’ recklessness, Spears did not want the men arrested.
“Britney Spears was part of the group, but was not driving recklessly,” said spokeswoman for the Los Angeles Police Department, Sara Faden.