Katie Rees

Katie Rees (born Katherine Nicole Rees on 11 August 1984 in St. Petersburg, Florida) is a former beauty queen from the United States who was crowned Miss Nevada USA 2007 . She was to compete in the 2007 Miss USA pageant but was dethroned in December 2006 following the release of sexually charged pictures of her taken at a Florida nightclub three years prior.

Miss Nevada USA

Rees won the title of Miss Nevada USA 2007 on her first try in a state pageant held in Las Vegas on 8 October 2006. She was crowned by outgoing titleholder Lauren Scyphers. Her "sister" titleholder, Miss Nevada Teen USA 2007, was Danielle Hashimoto.

Pageant scandal

On 20 December 2006, allegations of Rees exhibiting lewd behaviour in a Florida nightclub, three years prior while away at college, were made, and several photographs of Rees, kissing other women, and simulating sexual acts were released to the media.^[1] This followed a scandal involving Miss USA 2006 Tara Conner, in which news reports claimed Conner had been drinking underage, using illegal substances and photos of her kissing Teen Miss USA; Conner was sent to rehab and allowed to retain her title.^[2]

On 21 December 2006, Rees was stripped of her crown by the Miss Universe Organization^[2] with the approval of pageant co-owner Donald Trump. She was succeeded by pageant first runner-up Helen Salas, who represented Nevada in the Miss USA 2007 pageant in March.

Life after Miss Nevada USA

On 27 January 2007, Celebrity Web Site TMZ.com published one of the sets of photos that got Rees in trouble with the Miss Universe Organization.^[3]

On 6 August 2007, Rees appeared on the television show Dr. Phil on an episode entitled "Caught in the Act."^[4]

On 6 February 2008, Rees was arrested for resisting arrest after allegedly assaulting a police officer after a traffic stop at 3:00 a.m. in Las Vegas. The charges were later dropped and Rees won a lawsuit against the Las Vegas metropolitan police department citing "excessive force" which had occurred during the same incident leaving Rees with a bruised, scraped and swollen arm and hip, a black eye and chin, and a missing front tooth.

On 20 September 2009, Rees featured on the Australian television show, Border Security: Australia's Front Line. During the programme, she was shown being questioned by Customs Officers at Sydney airport after swabs of her bag and laptop gave positive readings for cocaine. No drugs were found and the officers were able to verify the story with the friend. She was later cleared to enter the country. In describing the event, the Customs officer stated that they, "went and spoke to [Rees'] travelling companion. Their stories were similar, but not textbook rehearsed, so what she was saying added up. Even though - to me - it seemed bizarre, the world's a funny place. People do unusual things and that doesn't always mean they're drug couriers, but it was certainly something that had to be investigated thoroughly. And we did and she's gone now, on her way". Speaking to the camera crew outside in the arrivals hall, Rees said "I think I almost just peed my pants, to be honest with you. I'm shocked! I'm from Las Vegas, so you never know what the heck's going to be around out there! And thank Gosh I don't have anything on me because I don't do any sort of illegal activity - but Las Vegas apparently does".^[5]

References

External links

• Miss Nevada USA official website
• Miss USA official website