Sean Penn and Robin Wright's son Hopper Penn pleads no contest in drug possession case
The son of actors Sean Penn and Robin Wright has pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor in his Nebraska drug case where he was arrested for possessing marijuana and mushrooms. 24-year-old Hopper Penn and his girlfriend, a 26-year-old Uma Von Wittkamp, were arrested on April 4 at a traffic stop on Interstate 80 in southeastern Nebraska.
The car was initially pulled over because they failed to signal, but the police conducted a search after officers at the scene suspected drug activity. The Nebraska State Patrol discovered 14 grams of marijuana, 4 amphetamine pills and 3 grams of psychedelic mushrooms.
Hopper Penn was arrested for the mushrooms and less than an ounce of marijuana while Wittkamp, who is also an actor, was booked for the amphetamines and mushrooms. At the time of the search, Wittkamp was behind the wheel, according to police.
Both of them were initially charged with felony drug possession and they have pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge of attempt of a felony and were ordered to pay a $1,000 fine. A no contest plea allows a defendant to not admit guilt but acknowledge that there is enough evidence for a conviction.
However, Hopper has been candid about his past drug struggles and he even revealed that he would have taken his life if it wasn't for Penn. Last year, in an interview, Hopper said that he fell into drugs, including crystal meth, after Penn and Wright divorced in 2010 following 14 years of marriage. Two years after the divorce, Hopper and his mother moved back to Los Angeles so he could be closer to his father and she could get more work in Hollywood.
But only after a month of moving, Hopper got into a brutal skateboarding accident that required brain surgery. He could no longer pursue his passion for the sport, so Hopper fell into drugs.
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"I was doing a lot of stuff but meth was the main one that brought me down," he said. "I went to rehab because I woke up in hospital and my dad said, "Rehab? Or bus bench?" I was like, "I'll take the bed."
"Thank God I got out of that because that was the worst time in my life. Because it’s not fun when it gets to a point where you just need it," he added.
Sean Penn convinced Hopper to take a small role in 'The Last Face,' which Penn was directing and Hopper appeared alongside Brad Pitt in 'War Machine' as well as the film 'Puppy Love.' He will next appear in the film 'Between Worlds,' starring Nicholas Cage.
