Tatum O'Neal leaving court. Picture: Reuters
Tatum O'Neal, in a car's back seat with the window rolled up and her face buried in her hands, is taken from court yesterday after spending the night in jail for drug possession.OSCAR-winning actress Tatum O'Neal, who was this week arrested for allegedly buying crack cocaine, said she was tipped over the edge by the death of her dog three weeks ago.
O'Neal may face up to a year in jail after being charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance.
It was reported she was caught buying crack cocaine from a homeless street vendor three blocks from her Manhattan home.
Former drug addict O'Neal has reportedly blamed her dog's death for pushing her over the edge.
"Just when I was about to change that and wreck my life, the police came and saved me," she said, The New York Post reports.
"There's no excuse for what I did. I lost my Scottish terrier, Lena, three weeks ago. That seemed to set me off."
A judge released her from custody yesterday on her own recognisance and she was ordered to return on July 28.
At the age of 10, O'Neal became the youngest person to win a competitive Academy Award for her supporting role in Paper Moon, in which she starred along with her father, Ryan O'Neal.
She married tennis star John McEnroe in 1986 and after their divorce in 1992 McEnroe won custody over their three children following a protracted battle.
In her memoir, A Paper Life, O'Neal wrote that her addiction to heroin in 1995 led to her losing custody of her children, the Daily News reported.
O'Neal has said she later sought help and got off drugs.
