Hope Solo, a former standout goalie for the United States women's national team, was detained after she was discovered passed out behind the wheel of a vehicle in North Carolina with her 2-year-old twins inside, according to authorities.
Solo was arrested on Thursday at a Winston-Salem shopping centre parking lot and charged with driving while intoxicated, resisting a public officer, and misdemeanour child abuse, according to a police report. According to the article, she was freed from custody and given a court date of June 28.
Hope Solo arrested on DWI for child abuse charges
A passerby spotted Solo passed out behind the wheel for more than an hour with the vehicle's engine running and the two children in the backseat, according to an arrest warrant. A responding officer detected the odour of alcohol, and according to the warrant, Solo rejected a field sobriety test and instead had her blood drawn.
Rich Nichols, a Texas-based attorney who defends Solo, issued a statement on Friday but declined to answer specific questions about the charges, stating that his client would not react as well.
"Hope can't speak about the case because of counsel's advice, but she wants everyone to know that her children are her life, that she was released right away and is now at home with her family, that the story is more sympathetic than the initial charges suggest, and that she is looking forward to her chance to defend these charges," Nichols said.
Following the 2016 Olympics in Brazil, Solo was dropped from the national team after labelling the Swedish squad ""Cowards" for taking a defensive position against the defending gold medalists, bringing an end to an illustrious playing career marked by controversy.
In early 2015, she and her husband Jerramy Stevens were pulled over in a US Soccer-owned van, and Stevens was charged with DUI. She was also benched after publicly challenging coach Greg Ryan's decision to start Briana Scurry against Brazil during the 2007 World Cup, which many interpreted as a dig at Scurry.
In 2014, Solo was also involved in an incident with family members, which resulted in his arrest, though the charges were later dismissed.
Solo made 202 appearances for his country, winning 153 games and setting an international record with 102 shutouts. With the squad, she earned a World Cup title and two Olympic gold medals.
She conceded just three goals in seven games throughout the 2015 World Cup championship run, including five shutouts. In January, she was inducted into the United States Soccer Hall of Fame. The date for the induction ceremony has been fixed for May 21.
In 2012, Solo married Stevens, a former Seattle Seahawks and Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end. Vittorio Genghis and Lozen Orianna Judith Stevens, the couple's twins, were born on March 4, 2020.
