Implausible escape, stiff charges follow model's arrest

Estella Warren during the 2008 filming of the movie "Blue Seduction."

LOS ANGELES – If there was an award for “Most Dramatic Arrest of an Actress and/or Supermodel,” Estella Warren would be a heavy favorite for 2011 honors, following her Monday night run-in with the law around 11 p.m.

According to The Associated Press, the Planet of the Apes co-star and former Sports Illustrated swimsuit model crashed her Prius into three cars on Harper Avenue, fled the scene, was chased down by an alert citizen and kicked a responding police officer before finally being taken into custody for allegedly driving under the influence.

Once at the station, the actress reportedly executed a Houdini-like escape, wriggling free of her handcuffs and high-tailing it out the back.

“She was uncooperative and demanding,” a Los Angeles County sheriff’s representative told PEOPLE magazine. “She removed her handcuffs and fled the police station. She was captured and transported back.”

Friends of the actress, who also had a featured role in the poorly received 2003 comedy Kangaroo Jack, expressed concern following Warren’s arrest.

“She needs to straighten herself out, get help and focus,” one acquaintance told The Chicago Sun-Times. “Estella’s always been a little crazy, but this is really a mess. … She’s going to have to deal with all kinds of legal problems here.”

Legal problems that some experts believe could be dire.

“If she is indeed charged with felony escape from a penal institution (i.e., police station jail) it is a way more serious charge than the DUI (charge) that was the basis for the contact with police,” criminal defense attorney Troy Slaten told E! News. “Escape is a felony with state prison exposure.”

Being too drunk to remember committing the crimes also wouldn’t provide Warren a hopeful defense, Slaten cautioned.

The Daily Breeze reports that Warren was booked for battery on a police officer and driving under the influence. She posted $100,000 bail and was released at 2:35 p.m. Tuesday.

Warren is due in downtown Los Angeles court to face the charges June 14 at 8 a.m.