Phillip Phillips' Mother Arrested for DUI; Singer Has No Comment
Phillip Phillips' mother, Cheryl, was arrested for drunk driving on Thursday afternoon, reports state. The "American Idol" winner has had a tumultuous relationship with his mother, who appeared on several episodes of the popular reality competition last season.
TMZ first broke the news of Phillips' arrest after police in Georgia watched her veer across several lanes of traffic and pulled her over. She failed a field sobriety test and was first taken to a hospital for evaluation; once the hospital declared her medically fit, she was taken to Dougherty County jail.
Jail officials later confirmed the account to Fox News. Phillips has been officially charged with failure to maintain lane safety and DUI. She has been released on bail, and her son has not spoken about the incident as of yet.
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The Phillips family has had its share of ups and downs that played out in front of a national audience while Phillip competed on "American Idol." His family ran the Albany Sporting Goods and Pawn store in Georgia but put it up for auction. Phillips was criticized and accused of refusing to help provide for his family; he adamantly denied all those claims.
"My dad's had the shop up for sale for, like, eight years. He was trying to get rid of it for a certain price, but he's never gotten it. So he's kind of letting it go now. And I think my mum's retiring pretty soon, too. So they're kind of just ready to retire and go see the world a little bit," Phillips told New York Magazine.
The "American Idol" winner has had his own share of problems, though they were mostly physical. During the competition he dealt with painful kidney stones and had surgery after the season ended. The stones "were so huge there was no chance he could have passed them on his own," TMZ reported.
At the time, Phillips' mother took to Facebook to ask for prayers for her son.
"I have a special prayer request," she posted. "Please stop and pray a special prayer for Phillip. He is in a lot of pain and I am sad about it. I just wish he felt good. I love him so much and wish I could be with him. He would appreciate the prayers too!"
