Poor George Michael. Just weeks after completing his first world tour in fifteen years, the singer was busted in a London public bathroom for drug possession. The police report doesn't name Michael, but sources confirmed to the British press that he was busted Friday for crack possession after a suspicious bathroom attendant tipped off the cops. This comes after his famous 1998 arrest by an undercover officer for lewd conduct in a Beverly Hills bathroom, and his 2006 adventure when he plead guilty to driving under the influence of drugs after being found slumped over the wheel of his car and was forbidden to drive for two years. This time, the law is taking it easy on the former Wham front man.

The singer was taken to a police station and given the caution for possessing class A and class C drugs. Home Office Minister Tony McNulty said drug laws needed to be "flexible". Asked why Michael had been given a relatively mild punishment for the possession of class A drugs, Mr McNulty said he did not know the details of the case [...] But he added that the law provides a wide range of punishments for possession of drugs, and "circumstances and context" had to be applied. The Home Office website says possession of class A drugs can result in up to seven years in prison, an unlimited fine or both. Mr McNulty told the BBC: "The biggest message is that drugs are wrong and people will be punished, but it must be right that there is flexiblity in the law." But the government has the balance "about right" between being tough when it needs to be and providing treatment for individuals "to get off that horrible spiral of drug dependancy and crime", he added.

[BBC]