Former child actor Jake Lloyd has been behind bars since June when he led police on a high-speed chase through South Carolina.
But recently his mother Lisa revealed that the former Anakin Skywalker had a little Darth Vader in him after all, as the fallen thespian has been diagnosed as schizophrenic.
This new medical finding has prompted authorities to transfer custody of the star, who is now a grizzly 27-years-old, from a jail cell to a psychiatric ward for further analysis and treatment.
An official date has not yet been set for his pending release, but the primary concern at this time is Lloyd’s health.
Jake starred in ‘The Phantom Menace’ alongside Natalie Portman, Ewan McGregor and Liam Neeson. The film earned a handsome $2 billion from worldwide box office receipts and rentals. Lloyd was only 10 years old at the time of the film’s release.
Lloyd’s recent troubles began after a high speed police chase saw him ram his car into a tree.
He was driving through Charleston, South Carolina, when sheriff’s deputies began pursuing him for reckless driving.
The chase went on for 25 miles, before Lloyd lost control of his car and ran off Interstate 95, totaling his vehicle.
At the time of the chase Lloyd had plowed through a fence and continued speeding along a parallel frontage road. When the road finally ended in a dead end, the vehicle had too much forward momentum to stop and barreled into the forest, slapping into every tree and shrub unlucky enough to be in the way before physics brought the car to a stop.
Lloyd tallied an impressive list of charges from the incident, including reckless driving, failure to stop, resisting arrest and driving without a license.
Lloyd has been notoriously critical of his child stardom, claiming it ruined his life.
He has been a much maligned figure for his performance in “The Phantom Menace” while a child actor, but with any luck his recent public embarrassments will be reason for former critics to become compassionate empathizers.
The boy needs help, and we will root for him until he gets it.
