Sports agent put on informal probation

Prominent Newport Beach sports agent Leigh Steinberg was put on informal probation Tuesday following his guilty plea to misdemeanor driving under the influence of alcohol.

Steinberg, 58, was arrested about 1 a.m. April 13 by Newport Beach police after he hit three parked cars in the 1000 block of West Coast Highway near the Balboa Bay Club.

He caused moderate damage to the three cars he struck before his own car, a 2002 Mercedes-Benz ML 500, came to a rest on top of a fire hydrant.

He was taken to Newport Beach Jail, where he requested a blood alcohol test, which ultimately showed him to have a blood alcohol content of .09 percent.

Steinberg pleaded guilty July 12 to driving under the influence. He has also paid penalties and fines of $390 and was ordered to take part in a first-time offender alcohol program.

Technically, though, this was not his first offense. On Sept. 7, 1996, Steinberg plead guilty to misdemeanor drunken driving with a blood-alcohol level of .20 in Newport Beach and was given essentially the same sentence at that time.

Because the original conviction occurred more than 10 years ago, authorities said it is not reflected on Steinberg’s record.

If the agent has another violation in the next 10 years, it will register as a second offense.

— Heidi Schultheis