Nigel, there is nothing sincere about Mel's statement. It was crafted, as bobad pointed out, by his lawyers and handlers. He had no choice but to apologize, because the damning evidence was already out there.

If he had been able to keep it all under wraps, there would never have been a statement.

I can appreciate you might be a fan of Mel's films. But that still doesn't change the facts. The guy is a jerk, he got caught doing things that if you or I had done them, would most definitely have kept us in jail until we appeared before a judge. There is no mystery here. He was given special treatment, in large part because he has done favors for the sheriff who suppressed the original arrest report, and released him upon his own recognizance for a paltry bail sum.

Anyone else who had done what Mel Gibson is alleged to have done would have been slapped with assaulting a police officer charges so fast it would make Mel's tequila bottles in the back seat spin out of control.

There is special treatment being doled out to Mel Gibson. There has been a cover up by the sheriff, who still refuses to release the original arrest report or the mug shot. They certainly haven't had trouble getting out the mug shots and arrest reports for other celebs like Nick Nolte (same sheriff's dept, not incidentally).