Judge gives actress two more weeks to decide if she'll accept a plea deal, which will require jail time, rather than proceed to trial.
By Jayson Rodriguez
Lindsay Lohan in court on Thursday
Photo: David McNew/Pool/Getty Images
Lindsay Lohan appeared in a Los Angeles courtroom on Thursday (March 10) and rejected a plea deal that would have put the troubled actress behind bars as a part of the agreement. Lohan is charged with felony grand theft in the case.
Lohan will return to court on March 25 to offer her final decision on whether she will accept the plea deal. If she rejects the deal, a preliminary hearing will be set for April 22 before a different judge, according to TMZ. During the hearing, prosecutors will present evidence stemming from a January incident in which the starlet allegedly stole a necklace from a jewelry store.
Judge Keith Schwartz warned Lohan that her options were dwindling, suggesting that she would be sent to jail if a deal could not be reached.
The "Mean Girls" star's attorney, Shawn Chapman Holley, has been attempting to strike a deal with prosecutors that would spare her client prison time. Although Judge Schwartz rejected initial offers, it appears Lohan's lawyer will have more time to continue to negotiate. Lohan is facing felony grand theft charges after a Venice, California, jewelry store owner accused her of stealing a $2,500 necklace.
Lohan is facing up to three years jail time if she's found guilty. The former Disney star is on probation for past transgressions, including several DUI-related infractions.
Schwartz has gone on record insisting Lohan is certain to go to prison if she accepts a plea deal, a sentence that has been speculated to be six months.
"One of the things about me is that I treat everybody the same," Schwartz said at a prior hearing. "What I look to in sentencing is, 'What is the prior record?' In this particular case, there has been so much speculation in the press [that] I'm just going to tell you a couple of things: If you plead in front of me, you are going to jail. There might be an issue about the amount of time, but if the case settles here, you will be going to jail."
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