Tommy Lee Pleads No Contest to Abuse

Rock drummer Tommy Lee will spend at least six months in County Jail after pleading no contest Tuesday in Malibu Municipal Court to a felony charge of beating his wife, actress Pamela Anderson Lee.

The Motley Crue musician had faced charges on two other felonies--child abuse and unlawful possession of a gun--stemming from a Feb. 24 incident in which he allegedly struck his wife while she was holding the couple’s infant son, Dylan.

Those charges were dropped in exchange for his plea of no contest to spousal abuse, which has the same effect as a guilty plea.

A sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 20 in the Malibu courtroom of Judge Lawrence J. Mira, who said Tuesday that Lee will spend a minimum of six months and a maximum of a year in County Jail.

Under the conditions of a three-year probation Mira imposed, Lee will be allowed weekly supervised visits with his sons, Dylan and Brandon.

Lee must also enroll in anger management counseling, refrain from contacting Pamela Lee, perform community service, make a monetary contribution to a battered women’s program, and undergo random tests for drugs and alcohol, which he is prohibited from using.

Lee, dressed in a black suit and collarless white shirt that only partially covered an orange-red tattoo on his neck, answered a barely audible “yes” when Deputy Dist. Atty. Kathryn Solorzano asked him whether he understood that he could face up to four years in jail if he violated the terms of his probation.

Pamela Lee, 30, who was prepared to testify in a preliminary hearing on the felony charges, left the courthouse after her husband entered his plea.

The “Baywatch” star, clad in a simple beige dress and black sunglasses, was immediately surrounded by a crush of photographers and reporters and made only brief comments.

“I’m anxious for [Tommy Lee] to see his kids, as I’m sure his kids are anxious to see him,” said Pamela Lee, adding that she was proud of her estranged husband for taking responsibility for his actions.

Pamela Lee filed for divorce from her husband Feb. 26, a day before he was released from custody on $500,000 bail.

When Lee allegedly attacked his wife, leaving her with a bleeding hand and a sore, reddened back, he was on probation for injuring a photographer outside a West Hollywood nightclub in September 1996.

Lee pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge of pushing photographer Henry Trappler to the ground and was sentenced to 24 months’ probation.

Trappler, who suffered a fractured pelvis and rib in the incident, is suing Lee for damages, said his attorney, Gloria Allred.

Lee’s attorney, Charles English, gave no comment on his client’s plea Tuesday, saying that it was inappropriate to do so with sentencing still pending.