On the same day that her husband T.I. turned himself in to begin his 11-month stint in prison, Tameka "Tiny" Cottle has plead not guilty to charges brought against her stemming from their arrest in early September.

A lawyer for the 35-year-old Atlanta native -- slapped with a single count of misdemeanor drug possession last Friday -- entered the plea on her behalf, as she was not present in the Beverly Hills, Calif. courtroom during the hearing. If convicted of the crime, Cottle could spend up to a year in prison for the felony charges. A pretrial hearing is scheduled for Jan. 6, 2011.

Police claim that she was in possession of the drug ecstasy during her and her husband's arrest. The couple was pulled over on the Sunset Strip in Los Angeles a few months back after making an illegal U-turn. After smelling marijuana emanating from the vehicle, cops arrested the pair and released them shortly after on bail.

Originally posted at Breaking Legal News. Please visit http://www.breakinglegalnews.com/.

Defense lawyers are urging jurors to keep in mind Anna Nicole Smith's persistent pain when they deliberate on a drug conspiracy case against two of her doctors and her lawyer-boyfriend.

Howard K. Stern and Drs. Sandeep Kapoor and Khristine Eroshevich have pleaded not guilty to conspiring to provide excessive prescription drugs to the former Playboy model while knowing she was an addict. They are not charged in her 2007 accidental overdose death in Florida.

"Pain is as real as the person feeling it," attorney Brad Brunon, who represents Eroshevich, said Wednesday. "The pain that is emotionally based is as excruciating as any other pain."

The final defense closing argument by Steve Sadow, the lawyer for Stern, was scheduled for Thursday. Prosecutors will respond before the case goes to the jury.

Brunon and attorney Ellyn Garafalo, representing Kapoor, accused prosecutors on Wednesday of trying to prejudice the case with photos of Eroshevich naked in a bathtub with Smith and other photos of Kapoor nuzzling Smith's neck after riding with her in a gay pride parade.

Brunon became emotional as he spoke of Eroshevich's efforts to help Smith through the pain of losing her 20-year-old son just after giving birth to her daughter.

Originally posted at Breaking Legal News. Please visit http://www.breakinglegalnews.com/.

New York Mets closer Francisco Rodriguez is due in court to face charges that he assaulted his girlfriend's father and then violated a restraining order stemming from the incident.

Rodriguez is accused of grabbing 53-year-old Carlos Pena after an Aug. 11 game at Citi Field and hitting him in the face.

The 28-year-old reliever is accused of later sending text messages to Pena's daughter, Daian Pena.

He is scheduled to appear in a Queens court on Thursday.

Defense lawyer Christopher Booth has said Rodriguez didn't clearly understand he wasn't allowed to attempt to resolve the disagreement with his girlfriend. Booth said the text messages he sent her were declarations of love.

Rodriguez has been free on bail. He's still barred from contacting Pena and her family.

Originally posted at Breaking Legal News. Please visit http://www.breakinglegalnews.com/.

Rapper Kid Cudi has pleaded guilty in New York City to misdemeanor possession of a controlled substance.

The Manhattan district attorney's office said Tuesday that the charge will be dismissed if the entertainer stays out of trouble for six months and serves two days of community service.

Cudi was arrested June 11. Police said at the time they believed he had cocaine in his pocket. He performed the next day at the Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival in Tennessee.

The Cleveland native released his debut album, "Man on the Moon: The End of Day," in 2009.

Cudi pleaded guilty last Friday through his lawyer. His next court date is March 23.

Originally posted at Breaking Legal News. Please visit http://www.breakinglegalnews.com/.

Actress Lindsay Lohan is expected to appear in court Friday after a judge revoked her probation earlier in the week.

Judge Elden Fox revoked Lohan's probation Monday and signed a bench warrant for her arrest, but the judge is holding it until a hearing at 8:30 a.m. Friday (11:30 a.m. ET), according to Los Angeles Superior Court spokesman Allan Parachini.

Lohan's supervised probation for a 2007 drunken driving conviction requires frequent drug tests. The judge warned her last month any failure could send her back to jail.

"Regrettably, I did in fact fail my most recent drug test and if I am asked, I am prepared to appear before judge Fox next week as a result," Lohan tweeted on September 17.

Originally posted at Breaking Legal News. Please visit http://www.breakinglegalnews.com/.

Mets closer Francisco Rodriguez is to be arraigned on criminal contempt charges after he sent text messages to his girlfriend despite a restraining order issued in his New York assault case.

The new charges were announced last week after he was accused of assaulting his girlfriend's father outside a family lounge at Citi Field. His arraignment is set for Wednesday.

The 28-year-old reliever is accused of grabbing 53-year-old Carlos Pena, hauling him into a tunnel near the family lounge beneath the team's new ball park and hitting him in the face.

He was told to keep away from Pena and his daughter, the mother of his twins. But Queens prosecutors say he sent her 56 text messages, mostly asking for forgiveness.

Originally posted at Breaking Legal News. Please visit http://www.breakinglegalnews.com/.

Rapper T.I. is expected to appear before a federal judge in Atlanta to explain why his probation shouldn't be revoked after his recent arrest in Los Angeles.

U.S. District Judge Charles Pannell Jr. signed the summons for T.I., whose real name is Clifford Harris, on Thursday. The same judge sentenced Harris for firearms violations.

The order lists three possible violations of his bond: possession of ecstasy, testing positive for opiates and associating with a convicted felon.

Pannell did not set a date for the hearing.

Los Angeles County Sheriff's officials say the Grammy award-winning rapper was stopped Sept. 1 on a Hollywood street after making an illegal U-turn. Police say they found several pills confirmed to be a controlled substance.

Originally posted at Breaking Legal News. Please visit http://www.breakinglegalnews.com/.

Mets closer Francisco Rodriguez is due in court in New York City on assault charges. He is accused of attacking his girlfriend's father outside a family lounge at Citi Field.

Rodriguez is scheduled for a routine hearing on Tuesday.

He was arrested after the Mets lost to Colorado on Aug. 11.

He tore a ligament in the thumb on his pitching hand during the altercation and had to have surgery. He was placed on the disqualified list. The team says he wouldn't be paid until he's off the list.

Prosecutors say the four-time All-Star was angry after the loss and took it out on his family.

After his initial court appearance, the judge issued orders of protection for Rodriguez to stay away from his girlfriend and her father.

Originally posted at Breaking Legal News. Please visit http://www.breakinglegalnews.com/.

Rumeal Robinson, who led Michigan to the NCAA championship in 1989, has been found guilty on 11 federal financial fraud charges.

A jury returned its verdict against Robinson on Wednesday, finding him guilty of bank bribery, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit bank fraud and making a false statement to a financial institution.

The U.S. attorney's office says Robinson schemed between 2004 and 2005 to borrow more than $700,000 from Community State Bank in Ankeny with the help a loan officer at the bank. Prosecutors say Robinson claimed to borrow the money for a business but actually bought a condominium, cars, furniture and invested in an energy company.

Robinson, who grew up in Cambridge, Mass., faces up to 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine on each count. After playing for Michigan, Robinson spent six seasons in the NBA.

Originally posted at Breaking Legal News. Please visit http://www.breakinglegalnews.com/.

The youngest child of reggae legend Bob Marley has admitted growing marijuana in her Philadelphia-area home.

The Daily Local News of West Chester reports 29-year-old Makeda Jahnesta Marley pleaded guilty Tuesday to having nearly a dozen large marijuana plants inside her home in Caln, about 30 miles west of Philadelphia.

Marley was arrested in 2008 after police say they found her removing plants from her basement when officers arrived on a domestic dispute call.

At a February hearing, Marley told the court she had exhausted a trust fund she received from her father's estate when she turned 18.

Sentencing is scheduled for October. Marley's attorney, Thomas Schindler, told The Associated Press he will seek probation.

Originally posted at Breaking Legal News. Please visit http://www.breakinglegalnews.com/.