Keith Richards Pardoned By US State

Keith Richards is to receive a pardon for a driving ticket 31 years after the offence took place in Arkansas.

The Rolling Stones guitarist was arrested in July 1975 in the town of Fordyce and fined $162.20 for reckless driving.

Richards was stopped while travelling from Memphis to Dallas with Ronnie Wood, a security guard and a fan.

However, Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee has offered to clear his record after Richards joked about the incident during a concert in Little Rock.

Huckabee told Reuters: "I realised his impression of our state was marred by a misdemeanour traffic stop. I wanted to clear his record in Arkansas as a goodwill gesture."

At the time Police claimed they smelled marijuana in the car and promptly jailed all four passengers, while Richards was also charged for carrying a concealed knife.