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Tara Reid Speaks Out After Hospitalization: ‘I Felt Something Was Wrong’
Tara Reid continues to speak out after being transported from a Rosemont, Illinois hotel on a stretcher on November 23 — an incident she has attributed to being drugged by a stranger.
But according to police, newly reviewed surveillance footage does not support that allegation.
The video that was obtained by TMZ captured Reid drinking and chatting with a man at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel in Rosemont near Chicago’s O’Hare Airport.
On Wednesday, December 3, the Rosemont Public Safety Department told PEOPLE that the footage does not show evidence of Reid’s drink being tampered with at the DoubleTree Chicago O’Hare Airport-Rosemont.
“While video surveillance showed Tara Reid at the hotel bar, at no time did video show anyone tampering with or adding something to her drink,” police said in a statement to PEOPLE. “We can confirm that a bartender covered her drink when she left the bar which is standard practice for bartenders to do.”
Authorities also noted that they have not yet seen any hospital toxicology information. “We cannot, however, confirm at this time if or what specific chemical testing the hospital may have conducted,” the department said, adding that they are coordinating with Reid “to receive those records which she has also not received.”
“Pending those results or further information coming forward, our detectives will follow up on those leads accordingly,” the statement continued. “At this time there is no criminal act that has been committed and there is no one we are currently investigating. While we do not have any evidence that a drink was tampered with, it is a good reminder to never leave a drink unattended. If you ever believe you have been drugged or feel unsafe, please reach out to local authorities,” the statement continued.
In her police report, the American Pie actress said she “completely blacked out” after having a drink with a man she’d just met while staying at the hotel for a celebrity signing event.
Reid said she had ordered a glass of white wine when “a man came up to me and introduced himself as Sean P, a very successful influencer and YouTuber.” The man then reportedly sat with her at the bar.
According to Reid, the two stepped outside to smoke and exchanged phone numbers. She later claimed that upon returning to her table “there was a napkin over my drink,” ABC 7 reports.
TMZ released footage appearing to show Reid unable to stand without help as a man supported her and a woman brought over a wheelchair.
Reid tried to report the incident once she was back in Los Angeles two days later, but stated that “they said that I could not file one over the phone and had to be there in person.”
She also told police that the influencer she met “texted me the videos of me the next day,” which she viewed as an attempt at extortion, claiming he said he “could stop the videos [from] going out.”
Reid later issued a statement through her representative, reiterating that she believes she was drugged.
“Bottom line is no one ends up in the hospital incapacitated for over 8 hours after a drink,” she said. “Last thing I remember is having one drink and waking up in the hospital the next day without remembering anything. That was the scariest feeling I have ever felt. I felt so helpless. This has been a horrifying experience for me that is severely affecting my mental health. I cannot sleep over this, it’s a very scary feeling not knowing what happened to me. I believe I was drugged. Something happened to me.”
We reached out to Reid for comment, and she shared the following statement:
“I’ve been honest about the fact that I don’t remember anything after my first drink. All I said was that I felt something was wrong and that I felt I may have been drugged, because I have no other explanation for why I woke up in a hospital gown with no memory of how I got there.
Seeing the media twist my words and attack me for not remembering has been incredibly painful and is severely affecting my mental health. I feel bullied and judged for something I cannot recall. I’m trying to heal, but the public scrutiny is making that very difficult, and I’ve been afraid to even leave my house.
No one ends up in the hospital for around eleven hours from drinking wine alone. I hadn’t taken any medication that day, and I know something wasn’t right. Whether I had additional drinks after that doesn’t matter, the fact is I don’t remember anything.
I’m asking for privacy, compassion, and space to heal. I’ve shared the only truth I have: what I remember, and what I felt.”
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