O'Neal charged with felony drug possession

MALIBU, Calif., Oct. 16 (UPI) -- Actor Ryan O'Neal faces felony drug possession charges in his arrest last month at his Malibu home, his lawyer said.

O'Neal is best known for his roles in the movies "Love Story" and "Paper Moon."

E! Online said the 67-year-old actor and his 23-year-old son Redmond were formally charged Wednesday.

They were arrested Sept. 17 for alleged drug possession after sheriff's deputies said they found methamphetamine during a probation visit to the house in a previous drug case involving Redmond.

Redmond is said to have been in possession of drugs when investigators arrived while a vial of methamphetamine allegedly was found in Ryan O'Neal's room.

Both father and son are facing one count of felony possession of a controlled substance, two misdemeanor counts of possession of drug paraphernalia and one count of illegal possession of pepper spray, E! Online said.

"Those were not Ryan's drugs, he doesn't use drugs, and has nothing to do with them," the actor's lawyer Mark Werksman told People magazine shortly after his arrest. "It's a dangerous assumption for deputies to have arrested Ryan just because he was in proximity to the drugs. ... I have full confidence that Ryan will be vindicated."

People.com said O'Neal's attorney didn't offer an explanation as to how the drugs might have ended up in his bedroom as police said, or to whom they may have belonged.