NEWSMel Gibson Makes Plea Deal & Avoids Jail Time
March 9 2011, Published 7:28 a.m. ET
Getting sick of Charlie Sheen? How about a Mel Gibson update instead? The actor has reportedly made a plea deal in his criminal case and will not be given jail time.
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According to TMZ sources, Mel will appear in court on Friday and plead no contest to simple battery, which is a lesser charge than corporal injury on a spouse.
Mel reportedly decided to make the deal to protect his loved ones after the Jan. 6, 2010 fight with Oksana Grigorieva.
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With the deal, Mel will have to go through counseling but will reportedly receive no jail time.
"I know from almost 20 years as a criminal defense lawyer that sometimes justice can come for a client at too high a personal price," Blair Berk, Mel's lawyer, said in a statement to TMZ. "That is particularly so for Mel, whose right to due process can only be exercised in this case with an enormous media circus attached."
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"Mel's priority throughout all of this has been that the best interests of his young daughter Lucia and the rest of his children be put first in any decisions made," he added. "It is with only that in mind that he asked me to approach the District Attorney with a proposal that would bring all of this to an immediate end."
