Nick Bollea's incarceration ends early

After spending 166 days behind bars in Pinellas County jail, Nick Bollea walked free on Tuesday morning (October 21).

Bollea, the 18-year-old son of celebrity wrestler Hulk Hogan, was released from jail in Florida on Tuesday morning about 12:30 a.m. Bollea got a big greeting from his singer sister Brooke Hogan as he left the jail. He flashed a peace sign as he left the jail, but didn’t comment.

“I can’t even tell you, as a sister, how exciting this is for me! Nick and I are like best friends...and I can’t believe how long I’ve gone without him,” Brooke wrote on her MySpace page just prior to her brother’s release.

“I just can’t wait to see my Nicky! I’m gonna make him every kind of food you can possibly think of! He’s been living on bread and potatoes so far and I know some Mac-n-Cheese is gonna hit the spot! LOL,” she added.

Bollea spent five months in slammer for causing a serious traffic crash in August 2007. Released three months early on good behavior, Bollea had pleaded no contest in May to reckless driving charges stemming from the last year’s crash that left his friend and passenger, John Graziano with a serious head injury.

Bollea was driving a yellow Toyota Supra owned by his father, when he suddenly lost control of his car and hit a palm tree, severely injuring Graziano who remains hospitalized and needs life-long treatment.

Bollea was originally sentenced to eight months in jail on reckless driving charges for the crash, but the term was later reduced to five months for good behavior. Besides 8-month imprisonment, he was awarded with probation of five years and 500 hours of community service.

Bollea could have faced five years in prison, but the Graziano family requested a lesser sentence for him. He entered the jail on May 9, 2008.

His mother, Linda Bollea, released a statement Tuesday asking for privacy. "This is our time as a family to come together to support Nick's adjustment back into the public life keeping it as normal as possible. Neither Nick, nor we as a family, has any interest in making this anything but private. We respect the media's role and only ask that they respect our privacy,” she said.

Linda added: "Nick went into prison as a juvenile and has experienced something that will mold and affect him for the rest of his adult life. His focus is to make a positive difference in this world, media free. Since his future actions will speak louder than any words, there is no need to speak to the media at this time."

Meanwhile, Grazianos are reportedly pursuing a civil case against the Hogan family, demanding compensation and long-term care for their son.