Singer arrested after argument with wife

Keith Paul

Tuesday, Nov. 20, 2001 | 9:52 a.m.

The lead singer of the alternative rock band Stone Temple Pilots spent 12 hours in the Clark County jail Monday after getting into a fight with his wife in the Hard Rock.

Scott Weiland, 38, and the rest of the band went on stage for a concert at the Joint in the Hard Rock Monday night. The band also has a show scheduled at the Joint tonight.

Weiland was booked into the jail at 2:26 a.m. Monday on one count of domestic battery after a fight with his wife late Sunday in a room at the Hard Rock, police said. He posted $3,000 bail and was released about 2:30 p.m. Monday after the mandatory 12-hour jail stay required following a domestic violence arrest.

Metro Police officers arrested Weiland after speaking with him and his wife, Mary Weiland. She had bruises on her left and right biceps.

Weiland, who has a history of drug addiction, argued with his wife in their room at the Paradise Road hotel about 9 p.m. Sunday over a prescription he was going to have filled. The couple's 18-month-old son also was in the room, according to a Metro Police report.

"He wanted to leave the room to pick up a prescription. He has a history of drug use, and I was scared of what might happen if he took those pills," Mary Weiland said in a police report.

Mary Weiland, who married the rock singer in May 2000 in Los Angeles, tried to stop him by standing in front of the door. Scott Weiland then grabbed the door knob and tried to open the door, with his wife standing in front of it, the report says.

"He tried to remove me from the door and, as time went on, he got more physical with me by hitting me against a wall and stepping on me," Mary Weiland, 26, said in the report.

Scott Weiland said in the report that a doctor prescribed the medication for torn cartilage in his knee. He said he tried to persuade her to move away from the door.

"She was very physical and verbally abusive," he said in the report.

Weiland said he was able to pry the door open and tried to leave, but his wife grabbed his leg and wouldn't let go.

"I pulled myself free. I went to the elevators and went downstairs," he said in the report.

Scott Weiland also said he told his wife during the argument that they should get a divorce, the report states.

Mary Weiland called hotel security, which then called Metro Police.

Sgt. Christopher Darcy, a police spokesman, said officers are required to make an arrest in a domestic violence battery if there are injuries.

"We determine who the primary aggressor was and that person is arrested," he said. "If injuries are present, an arrest must be made."

Darcy said an arrest is made when injuries can be seen, even if the victim does not want to press charges. He said Weiland's arrest was handled like any other domestic violence call.

"We have arrested other well-known people in Las Vegas before, and this was treated no differently than any other arrest," he said.

Weiland has been arrested in other cities on drug-related charges and has spent several months in jail. He was released from jail in January 2000 and, after a stint in drug rehabilitation, married model Mary Forsberg in May 2000.

The arrests and battle with addiction had delayed or canceled tour dates in previous years, but the band has been touring since Weiland got out of rehab.

The band released its fifth album -- "Shangri-La Dee Da" -- in June.

Weiland and his wife could not be reached for comment. The other band members and managers also could not be reached. Hard Rock officials didn't have any information about the fight or arrest.

"The concerts are on, and nothing has been canceled," said Tanya Tumminia, a Hard Rock spokeswoman.