Witherspoon issues apology after Atlanta arrest

First thing Monday morning, a media scrum gathered at Atlanta Municipal Court, where her case had its first appearance. Witherspoon was not there, and the proceedings took less than a minute. Her attorney, Steve Weiner, made no statements to the media, and the case was continued until May 22.

The actress, who has been in Atlanta filming an upcoming project called “The Good Lie,” was arrested early Friday morning following a traffic stop. Her husband, James Toth, faces a charge of driving under the influence while the Oscar-winning Witherspoon faces a disorderly conduct charge. A police report said she argued, disobeyed orders to stay in the car and at one point demanded, “Do you know my name?”

She did not speak to reporters at a red-carpet screening of “Mud” held Sunday in New York but issued an apology through her publicist.

“Out of respect for the ongoing legal situation, I cannot comment on everything that is being reported right now,” the statement said. “But I do want to say, I clearly had one drink too many and I am deeply embarrassed about the things I said. It was definitely a scary situation and I was frightened for my husband, but that is no excuse. I was disrespectful to the officer who was just doing his job. I have nothing but respect for the police and I’m very sorry for my behavior.”