Nicole Richie charged with driving under influence

Rail-thin reality TV star Nicole Richie was charged early on Monday with driving under the influence of drugs after she was seen going against traffic on a Southern California freeway, police said.

The predawn arrest of the 25-year-old "celebutante" co-star of "The Simple Life" came about six weeks after it was revealed that she had checked herself into a treatment facility to address weight-loss issues.

A Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department report showed the 5-foot-1-inch actress weighed 85 pounds (39 kg) at the time of her booking.

Officer Todd Workman, a spokesman for the California Highway Patrol, said police encountered Richie at a standstill blocking the carpool lane on the Ventura Freeway in Burbank at about 1:45 a.m. He said the officers were responding to reports from other motorists of a driver going the wrong way on the busy highway.