Phelps to be cited for expired driver's license after accident

The accident late Thursday was not Phelps' fault and was caused by another driver who ran a red light, police said.

Officers did not administer field sobriety tests because Phelps showed no signs of being impaired by alcohol, police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said. Police were aware of Phelps' 2004 conviction for drunken driving and did not give him special treatment, Guglielmi said.

Phelps told police he drank a beer around 7:30 p.m. and left his house about an hour later, according to a police report. The accident occurred around 8:45 p.m., shortly after he had left Baltimore's train station with two passengers, the report said.

The swimming star will be cited for driving without a license and failure to establish residency in Maryland, Guglielmi said. The citation carries no fine, but Phelps will have to appear in court and explain why he did not have a valid license.

Phelps presented officers with a Michigan driver's license, according to a police report, and investigators determined that the license was invalid after consulting with Michigan authorities. Phelps lived in Michigan between the 2004 and 2008 Olympics and moved back to his native Baltimore last year.

The other driver, Amanda E. Virkus, ran a red light shortly before 9 p.m., and Phelps' SUV crashed into the driver's side of her car at the intersection of two one-way streets north of downtown, police said.

Virkus will be cited for failure to obey a red light and causing an accident. Those citations carry a maximum penalty of a US$180 fine and three points on a driver's license, Guglielmi said. Two parked cars also sustained minor damage, and one of them was occupied at the time, according to the report.

Phelps said in a statement to police that his right ankle hurt after the crash, but he did not seek treatment. His two passengers were uninjured. Virkus was treated at a local hospital for back pain and released. A woman sitting in the parked car was not hurt.

Subscribe to The China Post and save 25%. Click here

SharePrintEmail

Write a Comment

Terms

Enter your comments - 3000 characters max

Type in image code

Submit

 Receive China Post promos
 Respond to this email