Mel Gibson now faces a legal battle in addition to the one to restore his public image.

Prosecutors on Wednesday charged Gibson with driving under the influence of alcohol, having an elevated blood-alcohol level and an open container of liquor in his car when he was pulled over in Malibu last week.

If convicted, Gibson faces up to six months in jail, though first-time misdemeanor drunken driving offenders usually face minimal, if any, time behind bars. It's up to the judge to determine if Gibson would serve any time.

Prosecutors made no mention of Gibson's self-described "belligerent behavior" and "despicable" remarks in the complaint ¡ª reportedly the unleashing of an anti-Semitic tirade.

"After evaluating all the evidence presented by the Sheriff's Department ¡ª and they presented every scrap of evidence they had ¡ª we evaluated carefully and felt the charges we filed were the appropriate charges in this case," said district attorney spokeswoman Sandi Gibbons.

Gibson's lawyer, Blair Berk, declined to comment, saying, "It is inappropriate to discuss the ongoing case." An attorney may appear in the actor's place during his Sept. 28 arraignment.

Arrested at 2:36 a.m. Friday after his Lexus was stopped for speeding, Gibson allegedly had a blood-alcohol level of 0.12 percent, over the legal limit of 0.08 percent.

"He will be held accountable for his violations under the law," Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca said, adding that the charges "didn't surprise me."

In the aftermath of Gibson's arrest, his publicist, Alan Nierob, has said the actor-director was in an ongoing program for alcohol abuse before the arrest and has entered another, on an outpatient basis.

Gibson has apologized twice. In the latest he addressed the Jewish community, apologizing for his "vitriolic and harmful words."

According to a law enforcement official who spoke on condition of anonymity, the Sheriff's Department's report says Gibson told the arresting deputy: "The Jews are responsible for all the wars in the world," and asked him, "Are you a Jew?"

Gibson, 50, has had a troubled relationship with Jewish organizations since his 2004 blockbuster "The Passion of the Christ," which some criticized for portraying Jews as responsible for the death of Jesus.

Supporters say the movie merely followed the Gospel story.

Gibson's apologies weren't accepted by former TV producer Merv Adelson, who took out an ad in Wednesday's Los Angeles Times blasting movie studio heads for not strongly and publicly condemning the Oscar-winning actor-director.

"Let's make ourselves proud and NOT support this JERK in any way, just because he's a so called 'star,'" wrote Adelson, co-founder of Lorimar Productions, which produced such TV hits as "Eight is Enough" and "The Waltons."

A sheriff's spokesman's initial account of the arrest described it as occurring "without incident" and made no mention of Gibson's remarks, fueling claims of a cover-up after they came to light

In an interview with the Associated Press, Sheriff Baca maintained deputies made no attempts to cover up his comments.

"Those are completely false," Baca said while attending a congressional hearing in San Diego. "The district attorney in his statement clearly verifies that all of the evidence ¡ª including inappropriate remarks, hateful remarks, anti-Semitic remarks, including with the videotape along with the audiotape," is there.

Baca added that the deputy who stopped Gibson "had the full authority to not arrest him and just take him home."

"You know, if that were his option, if he chose that option, he would be within our policy. But he chose the arrest option, which to me, shows me he's doing a terrific job," Baca said.

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Associated Press writers Jeremiah Marquez in Los Angeles and Allison Hoffman in San Diego contributed to this report.