Authorities say Henry Thomas, the actor who starred as a child in “E.T. the Extra Terrestrial,” has been arrested for driving under the influence in Oregon.
The 48-year-old Thomas was booked into the Washington County Jail and faces the misdemeanor charge after police said they found him Monday in a stationary car.
Thomas played Elliott, the young boy who befriends an alien in the classic 1982 movie. He has also appeared in “Gangs of New York” and “Legends of the Fall.”
An email to his representatives wasn’t immediately returned Tuesday.
KGW reports the Tualatin Police Department said they received a call about a car that was not moving.
Police say officers arrived, found Thomas and took him into custody after a field sobriety test.
TMZ reported that local officers had to wake him up and noticed that he was intoxicated before taking him to a jail in Washington County. He was charged with a misdemeanor DUI.
Thomas told officers that he was an actor and starred in “E.T.,” reported local station KGW.
He was released from custody Tuesday on his own recognizance, a Washington County Jail spokesperson confirmed to CNN.
Traffic Deaths Down
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recently noted that fatalities on U.S. roads fell for a second straight year.
“More new vehicles are equipped with advanced technologies that prevent or reduce the severity of crashes,” NHTSA Acting Administrator James Owens said in a statement on Oct. 22. He also noted that the agency is making efforts to encourage seat belt use and curb speeding and impaired or distracted driving.nbsp;“This is encouraging news, but still far too many perished or were injured, and nearly all crashes are preventable, so much more work remains to be done to make America’s roads safer for everyone,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao stated.
In 2018, fatalities dropped by 913 from the previous year, meaning that died, the agency said.
“The estimated number of fatalities in the first half of 2019 declined by 3.4 percent from the same period in 2018, with 589 fewer fatalities over that time. That translates to an estimated first-half 2019 fatality rate of 1.06, the lowest first-half level since 2015. The estimates for the second quarter of 2019 represent the seventh-consecutive year-over-year quarterly decline in fatalities, starting in the last quarter of 2017,” said the NHTSA.
The Associated Press and Epoch Times reporter Jack Phillips contributed to this report.