Celebrity News April 20, 2010
Michael Douglas Pleads for Leniency in Sentencing of Son
In an effort to help his incarcerated son Cameron, Michael Douglas has written a letter to the judge, asking him to show leniency.
Cameron Douglas, the Oscar-winning actor's 31-year-old son from his first marriage, was arrested on drug possession charges last July at a Manhattan hotel. He has since confessed to dealing methamphetamine and cocaine -- which carries a mandatory 10 years in prison. He is set to receive his sentence Tuesday.
In Michael's five-page letter, which "Extra" has obtained, he details Cameron's lifelong problems as a product, in part, of a privileged but mostly unsupervised childhood, a family legacy of drug and alcohol problems and pressures from having a famous family, which led to Cameron gravitating toward gang activity and substance abuse.
But since Cameron's time in jail, Michael admits he sees a change in his son. "Cameron has already been sober longer than any time since he was 13," the "Wall Street" star writes. "With the plans discussed in your courtroom, a strictly supervised aftercare program, I believe Cameron would be a positive force to society and I know one of his strengths would be talking to kids, sharing the mistakes he made."
Michael concludes the letter by saying, "I love my son, but I'm not blind to his actions. I so believe out of the adversity, he will be a positive citizen ... I don't want to see him break."
Other friends and family also wrote letters to the court, including stepmother Catherine Zeta-Jones, NBA executive Pat Riley and Ann Dexter-Jones (mother of Lindsay Lohan's on-again/off-again girlfriend Samantha Ronson) who was a neighbor of the Douglases when Cameron was growing up.
Cameron's grandfather, 93-year-old screen legend Kirk Douglas, wrote, "I am convinced that Cameron could be a fine actor and a person that cares for others. I hope I can see that happen before I die."
