When you're the lead vocalist of a popular heavy-metal band then the likelihood is that controversial incidents are going to follow you around - but Mötley Crüe frontman Vince Neil perhaps did not expect to be arrested for his involvement in someone's death. Yet, in December 1984, when Finnish hard-rock band Hanoi Rocks visited Los Angeles, they stopped by Neil's home. With Neil and the group having consumed copious amounts of alcohol throughout the day, they ran out of booze and decided to drive to the local off-licence. With a drunk Neil driving his De Tomaso Pantera, he lost control of the car and collided head-first with another car - killing the two occupants of the other vehicle, as well as his own passenger, Hanoi Rocks drummer Nicholas "Razzle" Dingley. Neil was charged with vehicular manslaughter as well as driving under the influence of alcohol - due to the fact his blood-alcohol level was 0.17, while the California legal limit was just 0.10 at the time. Finally, in July 1986, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Edward Hinz Jr sentenced Neil to 30 days in jail, with a five-year probation period, 200 hours of community service, as well as to pay $2.6million to the victims of the crash. Yet the Mötley Crüe frontman was released after just 15 days on good behaviour, before the band dedicated their third studio album - "Theatre of Pain" - to Hanoi Rocks drummer Dingley.
NUFC editor for WhatCulture.com/NUFC. History graduate (University of Edinburgh) and NCTJ-trained journalist. I love sports, hopelessly following Newcastle United and Newcastle Falcons. My pastimes include watching and attending sports matches religiously, reading spy books and sampling ales.
