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Ross's Video Released
Jan 14, 1:19 PM EST
TUCSON (AP) -- A judge on Tuesday ordered the release of a police videotape shot during Diana Ross' arrest on suspicion of drunken driving, but without audio of her comments.
The singer's attorneys and a city lawyer representing the Tucson Police Department agreed to conditions of the release. Her lawyers had objected previously to making the tape public.
The video was shot while police questioned Ross and administered a field sobriety test.
Ross was arrested Dec. 30 for investigation of driving under the influence, DUI with a blood-alcohol level above Arizona's legal limit of 0.08 and extreme DUI, a charge that can carry greater penalties than a regular DUI.
A breath test showed Ross had a blood-alcohol reading of 0.20. The 58-year-old pop diva, who has pleaded innocent, wasn't at the hearing.
Principal Assistant City Attorney Beverly Ginn said the tape should be available after editing by Friday at the earliest.
At a hearing on Ross' request for a temporary restraining order barring release of the tape, Phoenix attorney Leon Silver told Superior Court Judge Kelly that the state would be best served "by suppression of the evidence given the danger to one of its citizens that could be brought about by release of this information."
A previously released police report on Ross' arrest provides enough information to meet the purposes of Arizona's public records law, he said.
Ginn said the issue was whether release was appropriate under the state's open records act, which requires that public records be released, excluding private, confidential information.
She said the police department didn't want Ross' statements released either, given the potential for pretrial news coverage and concern over pretrial release of suspects' statements.
The judge said Ross' comments about her family status, other personal and residential information and directions to her home would be edited out before the tape's release.
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