Police: Todd Marinovich, former USC and Raiders QB, arrested naked with marijuana

IRVINE (CNS / FOX 11) - Former USC and Raiders quarterback Todd Marinovich, who has a history of drug-related arrests, is back in trouble with the law with his arrest in Irvine, where police say he was found nude and with marijuana in a residential backyard.

Police were called about 9 p.m. Friday regarding a "naked person seen on a trail,'' Irvine police Cmdr. Mike Hallinan said.

Officers were sent to Venta Spur Trail to investigate and, while looking for the suspect, "heard noises from a backyard off of Bluecoat,'' Hallinan said.

The residents of the home also called police, saying they saw the nude suspect in their yard, Hallinan said.

Marinovich, 47, was cited and released after police booked him on suspicion of trespassing, possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Sans clothes and thus with "no pockets,'' Marinovich was carrying marijuana around in a "brown bag,'' the commander said.

Marinovich's legal woes owing to drugs date back to January 1991 when he was arrested while at USC. He entered into a drug-counseling program then and eventually had charges dropped.

Marinovich left USC after two years and was drafted in the first round by the then-Los Angeles Raiders in 1991. He ascended to starter by the end of his first season and started his next as top quarterback, only to get released before the 1993 season.

Marinovich has acknowledged in the past that his drug use contributed to the failure of his NFL career. He had subsequent stints with the Canadian Football League's Winnipeg Blue Bombers and the British Columbia Lions in the 1990s.

In 1997, he did three months in jail for cultivating marijuana in his home. He was arrested for heroin possession in 2001 and was on probation for that arrest when he was busted again in 2005.

Marinovich pleaded guilty in October 2007 to felony possession of a small amount of methamphetamine and misdemeanor syringe possession and resisting arrest.

Marinovich grew up on the Balboa Peninsula of Newport Beach and set local and national high school passing records while leading his team at Capistrano Valley High School in Mission Viejo.

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