(Reuters) – Former child star Amanda Bynes was charged with two misdemeanor counts of driving on a suspended license on Friday, after the actress was stopped and cited by police last week in Burbank city, police officials said.
According to documents obtained by celebrity website TMZ.com, Bynes was cited twice by the same airport authority police official on September 16 – the second incident an hour and a half after the first – for driving on a suspended license near Burbank’s Bob Hope Airport.
Bynes’ black BMW was impounded and she is scheduled to appear at Burbank Superior Court by October 16 to address the charges, according to senior assistant city attorney Denny Wei at Burbank City Attorney’s office.
Bynes, 26, who had her own TV comedy sketch show on Nickelodeon at the age of 13, is also set to appear in court next week to address two misdemeanor hit-and-run charges, stemming from two separate incidents in April and August.
She was also charged earlier this year with driving under the influence when she hit a police car in April and will attend a pretrial hearing on October 29.
The actress has been involved in a string of minor car accidents and violations in and around Los Angeles in the last six months, and incidents of bizarre behavior.
Paparazzi who have been trailing her every move for weeks reported that she locked herself in the dressing room of a Hollywood clothing store for two hours last week, according to TMZ.com.
Bynes, whose last film was “Easy A” in 2010, has strenuously denied drinking and driving. “I am doing amazing,” Bynes told People magazine earlier this week, adding “I don’t drink and drive. It is all false.”
She also told People that she had retired from acting and was moving to New York to launch a fashion line.
Bynes’ representatives did not return calls for comment on Friday.
The actress joins a list of young celebrities whose careers and personal lives have derailed after early promise.
“Freaky Friday” actress Lindsay Lohan, 26, is currently trying to make a career comeback after five years of trips to court, rehab and prison stemming from drug and alcohol issues.
Pop singer Britney Spears suffered a highly publicized meltdown in 2007 that resulted in her father being appointed to manage her affairs. Spears, now 30, made a successful comeback in 2009 and made her debut as a judge on TV singing contest “The X Factor” last week.
(Reporting By Piya Sinha-Roy and Jill Serjeant; Editing by Eric Walsh)
