Haley Joel Osment is apologizing after using racial slurs against a police officer while being arrested earlier this month.
The actor, 37, was arrested and booked for alleged public intoxication and possession of a controlled substance at a ski lodge in Mammoth Lakes, Calif., on Tuesday, April 8. On Thursday, April 17, the Mono County District Attorney’s office said in a statement he was charged with possession of cocaine and disorderly conduct, and his arraignment is scheduled for June 7.
He is now issuing an apology for the “disgraceful language” he used while being arrested.
“I’m absolutely horrified by my behavior. Had I known I used this disgraceful language in the throes of a blackout, I would have spoken up sooner,” Osment says in a statement shared with PEOPLE on Thursday, April 17. “The past few months of loss and displacement have broken me down to a very low emotional place.”
Osment — who lost his home in the Altadena, Calif., home in the Eaton Fire in January — continued: “But that’s no excuse for using this disgusting word. From the bottom of my heart, I apologize to absolutely everyone that this hurts. What came out of my mouth was nonsensical garbage – I’ve let the Jewish community down and it devastates me. I don’t ask for anyone’s forgiveness, but I promise to atone for my terrible mistake.”
In bodycam footage obtained by PEOPLE on Thursday, Osment is seen being placed under arrest and heard repeatedly claiming, “I’m being attacked.”
When asked for his name, Osment repeats, “I’m an American.”
Police then search the actor and recover a $20 bill before putting him in a police car. While speaking with bystanders at the scene, the officer unfolds the bill and discovers a substance inside, telling those around to “be careful.”
It’s unclear what was inside the $20 bill. A police source exclusively told PEOPLE on Wednesday that the “controlled substance” Osment was arrested for “is presumed to be cocaine. We sent it for testing. We will have the results soon.”
The bodycam footage also shows one witness telling an officer that Osment was drinking at a nearby bar, however, employees cut him off after he spilled a drink. He became “aggravated” and “argumentative” and tried to get on a ski lift, but employees wouldn’t let him and called police, the witness alleged.
In bodycam footage from inside the car, Osment is heard saying, “I’m being kidnapped by a f—— Nazi.” He later calls the arresting officer a racial, antisemitic slur.
The actor has had legal trouble before. In 2018, police were called when Osment had a public verbal scuffle at McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas on Super Bowl Sunday in 2018.
In 2006, when he was 18, Osment was charged with misdemeanor drunk driving after he was injured in a car accident. He later pleaded no contest to one count of driving under the influence of alcohol and one count of possession of marijuana and was sentenced to three years of probation.
If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, please contact the SAMHSA helpline at 1-800-662-HELP.
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