The Oscar-winning actress Tatum O'Neal, who has publicly battled drug addiction, has been released without bail after her arrest in downtown Manhattan for cocaine possession.

O’Neal, 44, looked tired but said nothing as she was charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance. She rejected a deal that would have sentenced her to a two-day drug treatment programme in exchange for a guilty plea for disorderly conduct, and was ordered to return to court next month.

O’Neal, the daughter of Ryan O’Neal, won an Academy Award for best supporting actress for the 1973 film Paper Moon, becoming the youngest person to win an Oscar.

The former child star struggled for years with drug abuse and publicly feuded with her father and her former husband, tennis star John McEnroe. In recent years she has rebuilt her acting career, playing the hard-drinking Maggie Gavin in the FX channel’s Rescue Me. The show is now in production for its fifth and sixth seasons. Police found two bags of cocaine in her possession when she was arrested on Sunday. (AP)

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