Sam Shepard arrested for drunken driving in Santa Fe

Actor and writer Sam Shepard was arrested Monday on suspicion of drunken driving after a Santa Fe restaurant’s security detail complained about a possibly intoxicated driver. According to Santa Fe police Lieutenant Andrea Dobyns, 71-year-old Shepard explained to a police officer that he had two tequila shots and was planning on driving home. Shepard was arrested on a charge of aggravated driving while inebriated outside La Choza restaurant. Security called police sometime around 7:45 p.m. Monday concerned about an intoxicated driver. Shepherd refused to take a breathalyzer test, but he did attempt to perform a field sobriety test, which he failed. Shepard was released Tuesday afternoon after posting bail. He pleaded guilty and was penalized $600 and court costs and placed on twenty-four months of supervision. He also had to complete an alcohol treatment program and perform one hundred hours of community service. His film credits, among others, include “Black Hawk Down,” “The Notebook,” “Country,” ”Baby Boom,” “Steel Magnolias,” “Thunderheart,” and “Walker Payne.” He is the author of numerous books of short stories, essays, and memoirs, and won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1979 for his play “Buried Child.” Shepard was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of pilot Chuck Yeager in “The Right Stuff” (1983). Shepard earned the PEN/Laura Pels International Foundation for Theater Award as a master American dramatist in 2009.  .