Kiefer Sutherland Begins Jail Sentence

By: Shannon Gossage

Sutherland surrendered to the jail in Glendale, California at 5:46 p.m. and was processed. Officer John Balian said, "Mr. Sutherland is very polite and humble. He was very cooperative during the booking process. He will be issued an orange jumpsuit, and will be housed alone in a cell, since he’ll be a long term inmate." The Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office released a statement that said, "Sutherland will be serving the 48 days in the Glendale City Jail, with no early release and no good time/work time credit, so we expect that he will serve the entire 48 days in jail."

Sutherland will be an inmate worker and will reportedly be assigned to laundry and kitchen duty. He will have to serve breakfast, lunch and dinner to the other inmates. This will be the only time that he is in contact with the other inmates. Since he will be an inmate worker he will not be confined to his cell at all times and will reportedly be able to "roam" the jail about "75 percent of the time."

Sutherland, 40, was arrested on September 25 on charges of drunken driving after leaving a FOX event. At the time of his arrest he was on probation for a DUI conviction in 2004. On October 9 Sutherland pleaded no contest to driving with a blood-alcohol level over the legal limit of 0.08 percent. He agreed to jail time and in exchange the prosecutors dropped the DUI charge. Sutherland was sentenced to 30 days in jail for the DUI-related charge and 18-days for the probation violation. He was also sentenced to five-year probation, ordered to enroll in an 18-month alcohol education program, attend AA meetings weekly for the next six months, and must pay a fine of $510.