Charlie Sheen spends Xmas in jail

Actor Charlie Sheen spent the better part of Christmas Day in a jail cell after being arrested on domestic violence allegations.

This picture provided by the Aspen Police Department on Friday shows Charlie Sheen who was arrested on charges related to an alleged case of domestic violence

The 44-year-old actor was taken into custody Friday morning by officers responding to an emergency call from a house in this ski resort town in the state of Colorado.

An ambulance went to the house, but the accuser was not taken to the hospital.

Sheen, the star of CBS’ “Two and a Half Men,” was taken to the Pitkin County jail and booked for investigation of second-degree assault and menacing, both felonies, along with criminal mischief, a misdemeanor, Aspen police spokeswoman Stephanie Dasaro said.

He was released in the late afternoon after posting US$8,500 bond and being advised by a county judge on the conditions of his release, she said.

Dasaro declined to name Sheen’s accuser, citing a department policy prohibiting the identification of potential victims in domestic violence cases.

Aspen attorney Richard Cummins said late Friday that he was representing Sheen in the case. He declined to name Sheen’s accuser or discuss details, but he cautioned against any rush to judgment.

“I think at the end of the day it will be much ado about nothing,” Cummins told The Associated Press. “I don’t think there’s any criminality about what went on.”

Cummins said a court date was set for Feb 8. “That may be to determine whether a case goes forward or not,” he said.

Sheen’s publicist Stan Rosenfield also warned against making assumptions.

“It would benefit everyone not to jump to any conclusion,” he said.

Sheen is the son of actor Martin Sheen and brother of actor-director Emilio Estevez.

He is married to Brooke Mueller Sheen, a real estate investor who gave birth to the couple’s first children, twin boys, in March. They married in May 2008 following Sheen’s bitter divorce and custody battle with actress Denise Richards.

The star of “Platoon,” “Wall Street,” “Major League” and the “Hot Shots!” movies has had run-ins with the law before.

In December 1996, he was arrested and charged with attacking a girlfriend at his Southern California home. He later pleaded no contest and was placed on two years’ probation.

In 1998, his father turned him in for violating his parole after a cocaine overdose sent him to the hospital. He was later ordered to undergo a rehabilitation programme. – AP

Published Dec 26, 2009