Golf star Tiger Woods didn't know where he was early Monday when Jupiter, Florida, police found him asleep at the wheel of a 2015 black Mercedes-Benz stopped in the right lane of Military Trail, police records indicate.
Eldrick Woods, 41, blamed the confusion on "an unexpected reaction to prescribed medications." His breathalyzer test was negative, indicating the Jupiter Island resident was not under the influence of alcohol when police stopped him on Military Trail south of Indian Creek Parkway, near Dakota Drive and Jupiter Middle School.
Police had to wake up Woods, who was buckled in the driver’s seat of the Mercedes-Benz. The car was running, the brake lights were on, and the right blinker was flashing, according to police records.
Woods was unable to stand on his own, police noted, and could barely keep his eyes open. When asked if he understood the directions to recite the alphabet backwards, Woods responded “yes, recite entire National Anthem backward,” police records state. An officer had to explain the directions several more times before Woods could correctly complete the task.
Records indicate Woods was cooperative with police and agreed to take a urine test, the results of which were not immediately available. Toxicology tests can take several weeks to process.
Woods told police he was coming from a golfing event in Los Angeles. However, he repeatedly changed his story about where he was coming from and where he was going, records state. He asked police how far from his Jupiter Island he was. Police informed him he was heading in the opposite direction from his Jupiter Island home, which was about eight miles away.
Woods told police he was taking several medications. An officer listed them as “soloxex,” “vicodin,” “torix” and “viox,” the latter of which he had not taken this year.
Torix and vioxx are anti-inflammatory medications. Vicodin is a pain medication.
“I didn’t realize the mix of medications had affected me so strongly,” Woods said in a statement Monday night. “I understand the severity of what I did and I take full responsibility for my actions.”
Woods said he apologized “with all my heart” to “my family, friends and the fans. I expect more from myself too. I will do everything in my power to ensure this never happens again.”
Woods was arrested on a charge of driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol and cited for improper stopping, standing or parking in an illegal place, according to Palm Beach County court records. He was booked into the Palm Beach County Jail around 7 a.m. Monday and left on his own recognizance at around 11 a.m., jail records show.
Woods is scheduled for an arraignment hearing July 5 before Judge Sandra Bosso-Pardo, according to court records.
Court records list six people as witnesses to the incident. Florida Department of Law Enforcement records indicate all are Jupiter police officers.
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