A hearing that lasted minutes
Tiger Woods appeared at Martin County court in Florida on Wednesday morning. It did not take long. The golfer entered a no contest plea to reckless driving and refusing to take a urine test. In return, the DUI charge tied to his March crash was dropped.
Judge Darren Steele handed down two five-year driving bans, to run at the same time rather than back to back. Woods was also fined 1,000 dollars. The judge made the terms crystal clear in court: “There is no exception. If you drive for any reason, you go straight back to jail.”
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Looking back at the March 27 crash
The incident dates back to March 27. On a coastal road on Jupiter Island, Woods clipped a truck before his vehicle flipped over. Police at the scene suspected he was driving under the influence. The 50-year-old told officers he was looking at his phone and changing the radio station when the crash happened. Neither he nor the other driver was hurt. Police said they found two painkillers in his pocket.
Woods had initially denied the DUI charge involving property damage and the refusal to submit to testing. His lawyer, Douglas Duncan, filed the request to change the plea on Monday, which meant Woods had to attend in person. Wednesday’s hearing came just days before the one scheduled for September 8.
More of the same in 2017
Duncan knows this file better than anyone. He was the man who helped turn a previous DUI case into reckless driving back in 2017. He was also the lawyer who persuaded Judge Steele in April to let Woods leave the United States for in-patient treatment.
The golfer was accompanied on Wednesday by his partner Vanessa Trump. At 50, with 15 major titles to his name, Woods is once again seeing his life dictated by a court order rather than any sporting calendar.
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