Drug Charges Steer Heidi Fleiss to Rehab

Former Hollywood madam admits to "substance abuse problem" after being charged with possession, meth use

By Natalie Finn Jul 11, 2008 11:00 PMTags
Heidi FleissMark Sullivan/WireImage.com

UPDATE: Fleiss was sentenced Sept. 15, 2009, to three years' probation after pleading guilty in July to the two felonies. The plea deal stipulates that if she stays out of trouble until 2012, the charges will be wiped from her record.

The Celebrity Rehab alumna, who recently completed in-patient treatment with Dr. Drew Pinsky, will have to submit to random drug testing while on probation.

"She's dedicated and motivated at this point to stay clean," said Fleiss' attorney, Robert Hill.
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Heidi Fleiss has been given the ol' one-two.

The Hollywood madam turned laundromat owner is facing two felony drug charges stemming from her arrest earlier this year outside a Pahrump, Nev., hardware store.

The Nye County District Attorney charged her Thursday with unlawful use of methamphetamine and possession of the painkiller hydrocodone without a prescription.

"And that's all that's in there? That's a good day," Fleiss joked to the Las Vegas Review-Journal when called for comment. On a more serious note, she also said that she's planning to enter rehab for the third time as early as next week.

"I have a bit of a substance abuse problem," she said.

The focus of the upcoming HBO documentary Heidi Fleiss: The Would-Be Madam of Crystal was busted the morning of Feb. 7 when officers responded to a report of a possible drunk driver in the area and discovered unmarked prescription narcotics in her vehicle, according to the Nye County Sheriff's Office.

She was taken into custody and released on $1,367 bail after being booked on suspicion of driving without a license, possession of dangerous drugs without a prescription, being under the influence of a controlled substance and driving under the influence of a controlled substance.

A blood sample taken at the time also tested positive for meth, according to authorities, who said that it took this long to file formal charges because they were waiting for the test results.

Meanwhile, The Would-Be Madam of Crystal, premiering July 21, chronicles Fleiss' recent attempt to start the first-ever legal brothel for female clients in tiny Crystal, Nev. So far, however, she's only the mistress of Dirty Laundry, the laundromat she opened last year in Pahrump, which is about 60 miles west of Las Vegas.

"I'm not going to watch it," she told the Review-Journal, "because I know I look like a maniac at times."