Shia LaBeouf pleaded guilty to three counts of simple battery over a drunken Mardi Gras bar fight in New Orleans. The 39-year-old actor will avoid jail time but faces two years of probation for the misdemeanor offenses.
According to his attorney Sarah Chervinsky, LaBeouf came to court ready to own up to his actions. She called the incident "nothing more than a minor Mardi Gras bar tussle" and said he is "looking forward to focusing on family, work, and new creative projects."
Videos from Mardi Gras weekend in February showed a shirtless, visibly intoxicated LaBeouf on Bourbon Street before his arrest. He allegedly struck two people during a scuffle outside a bar near the French Quarter, was caught on video shoving someone to the pavement and striking a man in the face hard enough to possibly dislocate his nose. Reports claim he shouted homophobic slurs during the fight.
Before sentencing, LaBeouf was ordered to seek treatment and submit to weekly drug testing. Production sources on his upcoming film The Rooster Prince previously told Rolling Stone his behavior on set last November was "completely wild." One insider said: "I don't think he's stable. I don't know that he's been stable for a while."
This follows LaBeouf's previous claim of sobriety in 2020, made after allegations from FKA Twigs that he had physically, emotionally, and mentally abused her. As recently as last March, he said he was sober and credited actors like Mel Gibson and Sean Penn for helping him turn it around.
