The son of former Vice President Al Gore was arrested early Wednesday, July 4th, 2007 in Orange County on suspicion of possessing marijuana and prescription drugs, the latest in a series of incidents with law enforcement agencies in recent years.Albert Gore III was taken into custody about 2:15 a.m. after Orange County sheriff’s deputies stopped him for driving about 100 mph on the southbound Interstate 5 in Laguna Niguel.
When deputies approached the Toyota Prius at the Crown Valley Parkway exit, they detected the “strong odor of marijuana,” said Jim Amormino, a spokesman for the Sheriff’s Department. A search of the car found marijuana and prescription drugs Vicodin, Valium, Xanax and Adderall, an amphetamine used to treat attention deficit disorder, Amormino said.
Gore was booked into Orange County Jail on four charges, including possession of less than an ounce of marijuana and possession of the drugs without a prescription. He was released on $20,000 bail about 12 hours later.
Gore, 24, was arrested on suspicion of possessing marijuana in Bethesda, Md., in 2003 and later was ordered to participate in a substance abuse program. In September 2002, military police ticketed Gore for driving under the influence near Ft. Myer, Va., a military base outside Washington.
In August 2000, he was ticketed by the North Carolina Highway Patrol after being clocked driving 97 mph in a 55-mph zone. In an agreement with prosecutors, a reckless driving charge was dropped. Gore was fined $125 and his driving privileges were suspended in that state.
The only son of Al and Tipper Gore, he suffered severe injuries in April 1989 after running into the street and being hit by a car. The 6-year-old had just been to a Baltimore Orioles game with his father. He spent almost a month in the hospital.
