Caitlyn Jenner hit the golf course with “Today” anchor Matt Lauer to respond to criticism she received for being honored with the Arthur Ashe Courage Award at the ESPYS earlier this year, and opened up about the Malibu car accident that could land her in jail.
“I didn’t ask for it. They gave me the award,” Jenner told Lauer on the first part of the interview that aired Wednesday morning. “Did it take a lot of courage to come out? Absolutely. Do I have tremendous respect for Arthur Ashe and that award? Absolutely. And I’m very honored to have that awarded to me. Not just to me, but to this entire community, so I’m very pleased with how it turned out.”
Lauer then turned his attention to the multi-vehicle car crash that leaves a possible manslaughter charge looming over Jenner’s head after a woman died as a result of the February collision.
“What do you remember about the accident?” he asked.
“Very little. I remember it happening. That’s about it,” Jenner said. “Obviously something I’m in litigation, I can’t really talk about it. Something like this, a tragedy like this, you’ll never get over it, you just learn to live with it the best you can.”
Footage of the collision was released in July, and appeared to show Jenner’s Cadillac Escalade hitting victim Kimberly Howe’s Lexus as well as a Prius driven by Jessica Steindorff. Howe’s vehicle crossed into opposing traffic, where it collided with a Hummer.
Jenner, who was not injured, passed a field sobriety test and provided a blood sample for drug and alcohol testing. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has completed its investigation and handed it over to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
The former Olympian, who came out as a transgender woman earlier this year in an emotional interview with Diane Sawyer, maintained she was not driving recklessly, and cited the trailer she was towing as a factor in the crash.
“I was under the speed limit. I was doing 46 in a 50. My airbag didn’t even go off,” Jenner said.
Detectives who worked the case previously told TheWrap there is a “50/50 chance” that Jenner will be charged. According to attorney Marvin Putnam, a partner at Latham & Watkins LLP, “a transgender person who has not made the transition physically will be assigned to the prison of their genetic birth gender.”
For Jenner and the rest of the transgender community, that’s a big problem.
“The media wants that picture don’t they?” Jenner said when Lauer brought up the possibility of her serving a year in a men’s jail. “That is the worst case scenario. I don’t know. We’ll see. The men’s county jail is an enormous problem that they would put trans women in a men’s county jail. But those are things we’re looking in to.”
15 Biggest Social Media Revelations Before Caitlyn Jenner Broke the Internet (Photos)
When Beyoncé quietly dropped her self-titled album on iTunes in the middle of the night in late 2013, she posted a teaser video on her Instagram account with the caption "Surprise!" to alert her fans of the news. It sold 80,000 copies in about three hours.
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Pop icon Janet Jackson posted a video to her Twitter account in May 2015 announcing she was getting back in the studio. "This year, new music, a new world tour, a new movement," the singer said in the video.
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Hillary Clinton announced her bid for president in a YouTube video and a tweet saying, "I'm running for president. Everyday Americans need a champion, and I want to be that champion. –H" with a link to her website. The video has racked up over 4 million views.
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After a tumultuous negotiation, David Lynch announced in a tweet that he would be returning for the "Twin Peaks" reboot. “The rumors are not what they seem ….. It is !!! Happening again,” he wrote.
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John Stamos revealed Bob Saget would be joining "Fuller House" through Twitter. He said: "Last but not least-best piece of casting yet. The great @bobsaget will be joining our show on @netfilx - this completes the perfect reunon(sic)!"
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Nina Dobrev stunned fans of the CW's "The Vampire Diaries" when she announced on Instagram that she had decided to leave. “I always knew I wanted Elena’s story to be a six season adventure, and within those six years I got the journey of a lifetime,” Dobrev wrote. Half a million people liked her picture.
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Frank Ocean came out via a post on his Tumblr. "I feel like a free man," he said in the open letter.
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Nicki Minaj dared to bare for her "Anaconda" cover, which was posted to her Instagram account. The photo received over 300,000 likes.
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Both Royal Babies were announced via Twitter by the Clarence House account. Tweets were posted when the pregnancies were confirmed, as well as when they were delivered.
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Kristen Bell and then-fiancé Dax Shepard announced the arrival of their baby girl Lincoln Bell Shepard via Twitter. On March 28, 2013, she tweeted: "My new roomate(sic) poops her pants and doesn't pay rent…basically @daxshepard1 pre-sobriety 🙂 welcome baby Lincoln xo." He tweeted: "Lincoln Bell Shepard is here. She has mom's beauty and dad's obsession with breasts. Hooray!!!"
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Zayn Malik's departure from British boy band One Direction was made public through a Facebook post. He was quoted in the post, saying: "My life with One Direction has been more than I could ever have imagined. But, after five years, I feel like it is now the right time for me to leave the band." The post gathered over 700,000 likes.
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Drake took a page out of Beyoncé's playbook when he dropped a surprise album of his own. He uploaded the album on iTunes and tweeted a link to it. "If You're Reading This, It's Too Late" sold half a million copies its first week.
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*NSYNC dropped a major hint about their reunion by creating an *NSYNC Twitter page. Their first tweet said: "Mic check, mic check one.. two... is this thing on?!"
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In 2011, Paramount Pictures released the first trailer for its J.J. Abrams-directed sci-fi film "Super 8" exclusively on Twitter. Released through the movie's official account, the trailer made history as the first to be released exclusively on the social media site.
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Beyonce, Drake and Hillary Clinton among news droppers that set Twitter, Facebook, Instagram ablaze
When Beyoncé quietly dropped her self-titled album on iTunes in the middle of the night in late 2013, she posted a teaser video on her Instagram account with the caption "Surprise!" to alert her fans of the news. It sold 80,000 copies in about three hours.