Britney Will Be Back in Court on License Case

Oct. 10, 2008— -- With a comeback album in the works, her custody case resolved and her personal life no longer making headlines, Britney Spears appears to be finally leaving her troubled past behind.

Only one remnant remains -– a troubled past without a valid California license. Rather than accept a plea deal that her lawyer says was too harsh, Britney Spears will go to trial.

The singer will most likely not appear in court when the jury trial is scheduled to start Wednesday. Because it's a misdemeanor charge, she is not required to. That the case has gone this far, however, demonstrates that Spears is being unfairly targeted because of her celebrity, her attorney, J. Michael Flanagan, said.

"It's absolutely extraordinary," Flanagan told ABCNews.com.

Watch the premiere of Britney Spears' music video "Womanizer" tonight on "20/20" at 10 p.m. ET

Flanagan said cases like these are usually reduced to an infraction after the person charged produces a valid license and pays a $10 fee. From the beginning, Flanagan said, the judge and Los Angeles City Attorney's Office were unwilling to do that.

Instead, Flanagan said, the city prosecutor offered a plea deal that would have required Spears to plead guilty to a misdemeanor and accept a year's probation and $150 fine.

Flanagan said he rejected the offer because Spears does not deserve a criminal conviction on her record. "The easiest thing would have been to take the plea," he said. "But it doesn't seem right to me."

Frank Mateljan, spokesman for the city attorney's office, denied that Spears had been singled out. "We've consistently dealt with this case the way we do any other," Mateljan said. "She's decided to continue this process to this point."

The case stems from an August 2007 incident in which Spears hit a parked car in a shopping center and left without notifying the owner. She was originally charged with a misdemeanor hit-and-run. That charge was dismissed in November through a civil compromise, in which Spears agreed to cover the damages and the car's owner agreed to not pursue the case further.

Britney Driving Without Valid License

On Sept 26, 2007, however, the city attorney filed an additional misdemeanor charge. "During a subsequent investigation, we found that she was driving without a valid California license," Mateljan said. "You can't un-ring that bell. We filed that charge along with the original hit-and-run."

Spears, who is originally from Kentwood, La., had a valid Louisiana license. But prosecutors say she violated California Code 12500, which requires drivers to get a California license within 10 days of establishing residency.

Flanagan said the city attorney is using her 2007 divorce papers as evidence. Under oath, she told the court she had been a resident of California for six months.

After being charged with a violation, Spears got her California license on Oct. 2, 2007. Showing the new license is typically enough to reduce the charges, said Flanagan, who has handled mostly driving offenses in his 38 years of practicing law.

"The judge will line up eight or nine at a time and say, 'Do you have a license? OK, see the clerk and pay a $10 fee,'" he said. "Most are not even represented by counsel."

Flanagan estimates that 95 percent of these cases are adjudicated that way.

City attorney spokesman Mateljan said, "I don't know what the exact statistics are. But this incident didn't take place in vacuum. There are other underlying circumstances.

"Typically, these types of cases do settle well before they get to trial," he added. "We feel we've been fair with the offer we put forward. They seem bent on proceeding."

Flanagan has also questioned why the case has been "specially assigned" to Deputy City Attorney Michael Amerian, who, he has pointed out, is running for the position of city attorney.

"This is driving without a valid license, about the least of any matter that could be prosecuted and he's specially assigned to it," Flanagan said. "Why do you think that? They specially assign murder cases. Very seldom do you even see a drunk-driving case specially assigned."

Mateljan denied that Amerian had been "specially assigned" to the case. "We've given this case no special consideration," he said. "It's been assigned as any other case would be assigned. Mr. Amerian is handling this like any other case."

Is Britney Being Treated Too Harshly?

Flanagan has also accused the judge assigned to the case, James A. Steele, of treating the pop star more harshly after he rejected Flanagan's motion to reduce or dismiss the charge.

A three-judge panel also refused to intervene in the case, which means it will be moving forward.

One line of argument Flanagan is likely to take is whether Spears should be considered a resident of California.

"When you go into Kenwood, you go through an arch and that arch says, 'Home of Britney Spears,'" he said. "She travels. When she's entertaining, she's all over the place. Her base has always been Kenwood, La. That's where her family is, most of her cars. She's here in California because she has these domestic issues. She has to be here to see her kids. If she could take her kids out of state, she would be back in Louisiana."

If convicted, Spears would likely face probation and a fine.