Following a bizarre incident in New Orleans in which actor Nicolas Cage was arrested for domestic abuse, disturbing the peace and public drunkenness, the local district attorney has declined to press charges.
"The New Orleans district attorney has confirmed that no charges of any kind will be pursued against him. After their investigation, the DA has refused all charges against Nick, and the matter has been closed," Cage's attorney, Harry Rosenberg, told People.
The Academy Award-winning actor had been working in the Crescent City, on his latest film, "Medallion." Cage was arrested April 16 in the French Quarter after he had an allegedly aggressive outburst.
According to police, Cage was heavily intoxicated and violent as he argued with his wife, Alice Kim, in a tattoo parlor and on the street. He pushed her, and later, punched a few cars.
"He was running around and screaming in the street," a bartender at nearby Harry's Corner told People.
The couple were fighting over whether a nearby house was the one they were renting.
"Apparently, he had mistaken the house of my neighbors for the other house up the block that he is actually renting," Peter Bennett, a street performer who lives near the property, told People. "His wife was trying to persuade him from disturbing the elderly couple who do in fact live in that house."
Cage's house was actually three doors down.
When the police arrived, Cage started to get into the back of the police car but then took off, running toward the river, according to People. Police found him trying to get into a cab.
Howard Bragman, a longtime Hollywood publicist who does not represent Cage, told "Good Morning America" that Cage had taunted police, saying, "Go ahead, arrest me."
"They tried to send him home," Bragman said. "Then, finally, they did arrest him."
Kim has denied that Cage abused her and has declined to press charges.
An inmate who said he was in the holding area of the jail with the actor told People, "He was drunk."
But Cage spent the evening chatting with sheriff's deputies instead of behind bars, according to the inmate. "He wasn't in a cell. He was behind the counter with all the other officers," said the inmate.
In what sounds like one of Cage's post-Oscar flops, reality star Duane "Dog the Bounty Hunter" Chapman came to the financially strapped star's rescue, posting the $11,000 bond.
In a statement to E! News, Chapman said he bailed out Cage because "I am a truly dedicated fan of Mr. Cage.
"I performed my duties as a bail bondsman and not in connection with our show. This is what I do for a living," he said. "There are two sides of my job: I release my clients after they have been arrested, and pick them up if they don't show up in court. I do not believe the latter will be the case for Mr. Cage."
Cage had been ordered to return to court May 31.
"We are pleased that the process led to the correct result, despite inaccurate media reports, and that Nick has been cleared and all charges have been dropped," Rosenberg, Cage's lawyer, told People.