Griffin O'Neal Speaks Out About Family's Troubles

The drug arrests of Ryan O’Neal and his 23-year-old son Redmond at their Malibu home are just the latest chapter in a tragic saga, the actor’s other son Griffin O’Neal tells PEOPLE.

“It’s a very screwed-up family,” says Griffin, 43. “If you want to be emotionally healthy and strong, you’ve got to get out …. It’s a truly sad situation.”

Griffin has also battled drug addiction and says he is now two years sober. While he no longer speaks to his father, 67, the younger O’Neal remains close to his sister Tatum, 44.

Griffin is currently staying with her in New York, where he’s seeking treatment for Melorheostosis, a rare bone disease which may necessitate amputation of his left leg.

“It’s horribly painful,” Griffin says. “It’s off the scale on the pain.”

Ryan O’Neal’s lawyer declined to respond to Griffin’s comments. But the lawyer did tell PEOPLE the drugs found by police in O’Neal’s home didn’t belong to him and O’Neal “will be fully vindicated.”

For more on the O’Neal family troubles, read this week’s issue of PEOPLE on newsstands Friday.