Judge scolds Shia LaBeouf and orders him to rehab after Mardi Gras
arrest
[February 27, 2026]
By JACK BROOK
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A New Orleans judge ordered actor Shia LaBeouf to
return to drug and alcohol rehabilitation and set a $100,000 bond
Thursday after the film star was charged with two counts of battery over
an alleged assault outside a bar during Mardi Gras.
LaBeouf, who appeared in court wearing a fleece jacket and jeans tucked
into cowboy boots, was also admonished by the judge for allegedly
yelling homophobic slurs while hitting multiple people near the French
Quarter. The police report said LaBeouf dislocated one victim’s nose.
The judge ordered LaBeouf, 39, to submit to weekly drug tests, including
one on the spot in the courthouse. LaBeouf agreed and his attorney said
the test did not show illegal substances in his system.
Orleans Parish Criminal Court Judge Simone Levine called the episode
earlier this month a concern for “the safety of this larger community,
especially relative to a marginalized community that has gone through so
much terror," referring to the LGBTQ+ community.
“This defendant does not take his alcohol addiction seriously,” Levine
said. “This court does not believe he understands the level of
seriousness when it comes to these allegations.”
LaBeouf posted bond and declined to comment to reporters. He has not yet
formally entered a plea to the charges.
“No, I won’t say a word,” he said in a court hallway while returning
from taking a drug and alcohol test before the judge’s order. “God bless
you, leave me alone.”
Jeffrey Damnit, a local entertainer identified in the police report as
Jeffrey Klein, previously told The Associated Press that LaBeouf
repeatedly punched him and used homophobic slurs while threatening his
life. Damnit said he believed LaBeouf had targeted him because he wore
makeup and eyeliner.
“This guy wants me to be dead because I wear makeup,” Damnit said. “It’s
a screwed-up thing.”
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In this photo provided by entertainer Jeffrey Damnit, actor
Shia LaBeouf is taken into police custody in New Orleans on Tuesday,
Feb. 17, 2026, after allegedly hitting multiple people outside a
bar. (Jeffrey Damnit via AP)
 The judge said that when she
originally released LaBeouf without bond within hours of his arrest
on Feb. 17 she had not previously had access to a police report that
describes the actor allegedly using homophobic slurs as he returned
to a bar and hit people with a closed fist after being asked to
leave. Videos of the altercations have surfaced showing LaBeouf
striking multiple people.
After LaBeouf was released from custody, the actor was seen in the
French Quarter dancing in the streets on Mardi Gras.
Levine ordered LaBeouf to stay away from the victims and the bar
where the episode occurred.
The judge denied a request by LaBeouf to travel to Rome in March for
“religious observations, including his father’s baptism.”
Levine said during the hearing that she was concerned whether
LaBeouf “could handle his alcohol.”
“Frankly,” LaBeouf’s attorney Sarah Chervinsky told the judge,
“being drunk on Mardi Gras is not a crime.” ___
Brook is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America
Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit
national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms
to report on undercovered issues.
All contents © copyright 2026 Associated Press. All rights reserved
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