Britney Spears detained on suspicion of driving while intoxicated

LOS ANGELES, United States — Pop superstar Britney Spears was released from police custody Thursday morning after being arrested on suspicion of driving while intoxicated near Los Angeles, according to legal filings and US media reports.

The 44-year-old singer was arrested Wednesday night and booked into custody by the Ventura County Sheriff's Department on suspicion of DUI, several entertainment news outlets said, citing police sources.

Sheriff records showed Spears had been released at 6:07 AM local time and a court appearance had been set for May 4.

"This was an unfortunate incident that is completely inexcusable. Britney is going to take the right steps and comply with the law," a representative for Spears said in a statement to entertainment outlet Deadline.

"Hopefully this can be the first step in long overdue change that needs to occur in Britney's life."

Spears had phenomenal early music success with late 1990s hits like "...Baby One More Time" but has largely stepped back from music in recent years.

In her 2023 memoir "The Woman in Me," Spears insisted she never did hard drugs and that she did not have a drinking problem, but admitted that she was taking Adderall, the ADHD medication.

Following a public breakdown in 2007, Spears was placed under the conservatorship of her father Jamie Spears, who controlled her money and her personal life, even as she continued to perform high-profile concerts.

The conservatorship was dissolved by a Los Angeles court in 2021, after a groundswell of public support to "Free Britney."

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