Not the way he wanted to be spending Lent.
If you didn’t follow the antics of actor Shia LaBeouf during Mardi Gras, you missed out on a wild storyline – even by Mardi Gras standards.
I was in New Orleans for Fat Tuesday, and by the time we got to town on the Friday before Mardi Gras people were already talking about the “Holes” actor running around and being an absolute menace.
The first story I heard was from somebody who said that LaBeouf was on a balcony on Bourbon Street pelting people with beads, which, ok, whatever, he wouldn’t have been the only one who decided to be a jerk while throwing beads to onlookers below.
But from there it only got more and more out of hand: Just after midnight on Fat Tuesday, LaBeouf was arrested outside of the R Bar in New Orleans, which is just outside of the French Quarter and a few blocks from Bourbon Street.
Video quickly began circulating of a shirtless LaBeouf getting into a fight outside the bar, reportedly after being cut off and kicked out of the bar. (Do you realize how hard it is to get cut off in New Orleans, especially during Mardi Gras?)
According to the arrest report and witnesses at the scene, LaBeouf was reportedly shouting homophobic slurs, at one point telling officers that “[t]hese f—-ts put me in jail. I’m a Catholic.”
But then, like a phoenix rising from the ashes, LaBeouf managed to make it back to Bourbon Street in time for the Mardi Gras day celebration. Just straight back to partying after being released from jail.
He even had his jail release papers in hand, so apparently he didn’t even go back to his house. Gotta respect the commitment to the game. Mardi Gras isn’t for the faint of heart.
But unfortunately for the Transformers actor, it looks like he’s headed back to jail.
LaBeouf appeared in Orleans Parish District Court today for the first time since being released on bond on Fat Tuesday. (Apparently he arrived before the courthouse even opened and had to come back later). And apparently the judge saw what everybody else say – which was LaBeouf heading straight back to Bourbon Street after getting arrested – and wasn’t too happy about it.
During the hearing, Judge Simone Levine revoked the recognizance bond and instead ordered him held on a $100,000 bond. And if he does manage to make bond (which I assume won’t be a problem), LaBeouf has also been ordered to attend rehab and undergo regular drug and alcohol screenings while his case is pending.
LaBeouf is facing two counts of simple battery, which carry a maximum penalty of six months each – so up to a year in jail.
But one of those involved in the altercation that landed the actor behind bars has called for him to be charged with a hate crime:
“It’s ridiculous. It was literally saying not only will we not charge you for a hate crime when you commit one, but if you’re famous enough you won’t even have to sit in a cell.”
According to NOLA.com, the judge today called LaBeouf a danger to a “marginalized community.”
In her ruling Thursday, Levine told the courtroom her biggest concern was the potential danger LaBeouf poses not only to the victims, but to the broader community, particularly a “marginalized community” that has faced so much “terror” already.
I guess it’s not true that whatever happens at Mardi Gras stays at Mardi Gras. I’m just disappointed that I never managed to find LaBeouf while I was there. Would have been great content.
Update: LaBeouf has already posted the $100,000 bond. Look out Bourbon Street.
