Robert Downey Jr recalls being in jail in 1999: Worst thing that happened to me
Robert Downey Jr
Iron Man,aka Robert Downey Jr., is opening up about his experience serving time in a California state prison. He talked about itduring a Monday episode of the Armchair Expert podcast while speaking to podcast co-host Dax Shepard. Calling it “the worst thing that happened to me”, Robert Downey Jr. detailed the 1999 episode.
Robert Downey Jr. was sent to North Kern State Prison in Delano, California over his denial of substance abuse issues. He recalled being “over-sentenced by an angry judge”. He described it as a “receiving centre where they decide where you’re going to go,” and “arguably the most dangerous place I’ve ever been in my life”. He revealed that it’s a prison where inmates of various security levels are kept together.
“You could just feel the evil in the air, and that was no trouble at all because it was kind of like just being in a really bad neighbourhood. There was no opportunity there. There were only threats,” he recalled.
From there, the Hollywood actor was transferred to the California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility and State Prison. It took him weeks to realise what he was doing and where he was. “We are programmed to, within a short amount of time, be able to adjust to things that are seemingly impossible. And for me, there are worse things that could have happened than being sent to an institution, for sure. However, we can only go by what we know, and I would imagine if I had to guess, that was the worst thing that happened to me.”
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In 1999, The Iron Man actor was sentenced to three years in the California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility and State Prison. This came after he missed a number of court-ordered drug tests tied to a 1996 cocaine possession charge. He served only a year in jail after he got an early release in 2000 on the condition of posting bail.
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