David Cassidy, ‘Partridge Family’ Star, Cited In Hit-And-Run

One-time teen heartthrob David Cassidy, of Patridge Family fame, was charged for an alleged hit-and-run that took place on September 9, according to the Daily Mail.

The 65-year-old Cassidy was reportedly driving his 2014 Silver Kia Sportage in Fort Lauderdale when he “couldn’t stay in his lane” and hit a transport truck sidelong, causing damage and a flat tire to his car, according to the Los Angeles Times. Cassidy initially pulled over after the accident occurred at about noon and reportedly tried to hide his license plate before he got back in his car and took off.

The charges Cassidy are facing are reported to include leaving the scene of an accident, making an improper lane change, driving with a license under suspension, and having expired tags.

Cassidy was found about an hour after the alleged incident at a Cleveland medical clinic in Weston, close to the scene of the accident, where he reportedly told police he had been headed for a scheduled doctor’s appointment.

Cassidy is reported to have three DUIs on his record, with the most recent in January of 2014. Sentencing for the DUI was reported to have taken place in March of that year. Cassidy was ordered to undergo a 90-day stay in a rehabilitation facility, 60-months of probation, a nine-month “alcohol education” course, and pay fines. Cassidy successfully completed the alcohol education course in May.

Also in in May, Cassidy was sentenced in a DWI case he had already pleaded guilty to that took place in New York in August of 2013. He was ordered to have an alcohol lockout device installed in his car, pay a $900 fine, and a six month driving suspension, which was reported to still be in effect in September.

In the September 9 hit-and-run incident, Cassidy was reportedly not tested for drugs or alcohol.

Cassidy is said to be in a relationship with Maura Rossi, an interior designer. He declared bankruptcy as a result of a divorce from Sue Shifrin-Cassidy, his third wife. The two were married for 23 years.

Owing to the bankruptcy, he was ordered to auction-off his 7,000-square foot watefront Fort Lauderdale mansion. He paid $1.1 million for the home in 2001, according to ABC. There were reported to be four bids on the home, with the final selling price going over $2 million.

“I put so much time and love and energy into this,” David Cassidy was quoted with regard to the home.

Cassidy was awarded $158,000 in January as a result of successful civil suit against Sony Pictures Entertainment who was reported to have wrongfully used his image on merchandise and not paid the former teen star.

David Cassidy recorded at least 10 original albums with The Partridge Family and 33 as a solo artist, according to the singer’s website. Cassidy was reported to have had seven top 20 hits in the U.K. between 1972 and 1974, as reported by the the Independent.

When Cassidy was 24-years-of-age, a concert at White City Stadium in London, England, resulted in the crushing death of 14-year-old Bernadette Whelan, who was caught in a rush of fans. Seven-hundred-and-fifty others were injured in the same melee.

A “semi-naked” photo shoot is reported to have soured David Cassidy fans in the United States after it appeared in Rolling Stone shortly before his fame in the U.K. grew.

After the injuries and death at White City, Cassidy considered cancelling his next show in Manchester, but relented stating he “was just allowing the exaggerated public to influence me.” In the end a mere 8,000 of 20,000 fans actually attended, with many teenage girls being kept home by parents who had witnessed the devastation in London and who were fearful of their own daughters getting caught up in a similar ordeal and injured. Many tickets were returned. Even with the reduced crowd, six girls were reportedly injured at the Machester performance. Cassidy took a break from performing after the British shows of the early 1970s, stating, “Time to disappear to the drawing board for a grown-up image.”

[Photo by Frazer Harrison / Getty Images — Public Domain Publicity Photo Courtesy Wikipedia Commons — Photo by Robert Mora / Getty Images]