Paul Pierce is making headlines following his recent arrest in Los Angeles. According to authorities, the former NBA star is facing charges of DUI.
Police arrested Pierce on Tuesday night on suspicion of driving under the influence. California Highway Patrol officers stated that they found Pierce asleep in the driver’s seat on a Los Angeles highway. They were initially there to investigate an unrelated car crash.
Paul Pierce reportedly arrested for alleged DUI
According to an official statement, the police responded to the crash at about 10:40 p.m. The accident affected several vehicles on the northbound lanes of U.S. Highway 101, so the officers had to close four of the six lanes to investigate.
After reopening the lanes about an hour later, the officers stumbled across a Range Rover SUV parked on the road, south of the crash site. As per the press release, the police found Pierce asleep in the car and launched a DUI investigation after they “noticed signs of alcohol impairment (via Boston Herald).”
The former NBA star was then “arrested on a misdemeanor charge of driving under the influence of alcohol”. As of writing, the charges are under review by the Los Angeles city attorney.
Today, Pierce has finally broken his silence on the incident, explaining how he fell asleep behind the wheel. In his latest Instagram post made on Friday, the Hall of Famer revealed that he was stuck in traffic when he began to doze off. He shared a photo of the traffic congestion that he had captured.
“Imagine being stuck in stand still traffic for 45 mins and falling asleep ??♂️,” he penned. “I took this picture that night because I never been in stand still traffic for this long. I’m old, I’m tired, and I fell asleep ??♂️I’m good y’all thanks for the love,” Pierce concluded.
Paul Pierce is a 10-time All-Star NBA icon who has played 19 seasons with the Boston Celtics. He retired in 2017 after playing two seasons with the Los Angeles Clippers. Most recently, Pierce served as a co-host of the sports talk show “Speak” by Fox Sports before its cancellation in July 2025.
