American Idol finalist Stefano Langone was reportedly arrested on the suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol in 2010.
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The arrest came a year after Langone was the victim of a drunk driving accident that nearly killed him and has been detailed for viewers as part of his tenth-season Idol backstory, Star magazine reported Wednesday.
Lagone's DUI arrest reportedly began when he pulled over by a police officer for changing lanes without signaling and speeding. However, the 22-year-old from Kent, WA then failed multiple field sobriety tests -- one of which required him to recite the alphabet -- and registered above Washington State's legal alcohol on a preliminary test limit.
Police then arrested Langone, whom Idol judges Randy Jackson, Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler selected as a "Wild Card" finalist following the season's semifinal round and subsequently survived last week's first finals round.
"While en route [to WSP headquarters], Langone began singing," the trooper said in his report obtained by Star.
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Last month's broadcast of American Idol's San Francisco auditions had featured Langone and his parents discussing the 2009 accident in which he was seriously injured by a drunk driver but made no mention of his own subsequent arrest on a similar charge.
"May 28, 2009, my life took a 180-degree turn. I was in an accident that changed my life unfortunately for the worst. I woke up to a firefighter and I'll never forget -- he looked down at me and he screamed to the EMTs, 'He's alive! He's alive!'" said Langone about the accident which reportedly left him with two broken arms, a fractured pelvis and several other injuries.
"They told me that I wouldn't either walk the same, be able to walk right, or be the same, and I got on my feet in less than four months. Living through that and being in a wheelchair and not being able to play my piano -- that just makes you so much hungrier -- and that flame in you that says, 'I want this,' It burns more than anything."
Langone's father Ernie Langone said his son's recovery was a miraculous triumph.
"When we got there, the medics told us that when they pulled up, they thought he was dead, but we got through it," he added.
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski