‘Avengers’ Robert Downey Jr. Gets Pardon for Previous Drug Conviction

Two-time Oscar nominee, Robert Downey Jr., has received a formal pardon for his previous felony drug conviction. The 50-year-old’s good news was granted by current California Governor, Jerry Brown, on Christmas Eve. The Avengers’ actor was one of 91 people whose crimes were absolved.

According to Brown's website, individuals who have completed sentences and been released from custody “for more than a decade without further criminal activity may apply for a pardon,” which will be granted to those “who have demonstrated exemplary behavior and have lived productive and law-abiding lives following their conviction.” The governor's website also states a pardon doesn’t erase a conviction, but it does restore voting rights and is a public proclamation that the person has remained out of trouble and demonstrated exemplary behavior.

The Iron Man star’s legal woes started in June 1996 when Los Angeles police stopped him for speeding on the Pacific Coast Highway and while searching his vehicle, found cocaine, heroin and a gun. He was given a suspended sentence of three years and granted probation which he later violated, sending him to prison in 1999. Since his release back in December of 2002, he has been one of Hollywood’s greatest come-back success stories for addiction rehabilitation.

The title character of Guy Richie's Sherlock Holmes initiated the proceedings for his pardon when the D.A. recommended he write a letter to an L.A. County Superior Court Judge requesting a "certificate of rehabilitation." According to the letter, which was obtained by TMZ, Downey writes "My reason for asking that I be granted a Certificate of Rehabilitation is twofold, prompted in part by the extremely fortunate position I have found myself in since 2004, when I fully accepted responsibility for my addiction. First, it is to spare my family the unfavorable conditions a father and husband convicted of felony charges often (and sometimes rightly) faces. Second, I can now say without reservation that I am rehabilitated from my previous condition, that of a practicing addict." He later added "I do not consider myself a 'role model', but I sincerely believe the limitations imposed by my past digressions are not in line with the way I have conducted myself in this second life."

The judge granted Downey's request in October which was then forwarded to the governor's office. Brown said Downey has led an "honest and upright life" since his convictions and exhibited "good moral character." He later added that Downey's been law-abiding and demonstrated "good conduct in the community."