Troubled actress was charged with felony grand theft on Wednesday. By Gil Kaufman Lindsay Lohan Photo: Getty Images Hours after being arraigned on Wednesday on a felony charge of grand theft in connection with the alleged lifting of a $2,500 necklace from a Venice, California, jewelry store, troubled actress Lindsay Lohan posted $40,000 bail and was released from jail. E! News reported that Lohan’s first order of business after being sprung was to tweet a link to a photo of her with Kanye West taken at a February 4 dinner party for designer Giuseppe Zanotti. That snap was reportedly taken down a short time later, at which point she responded to a tweet of support from “Celebrity Rehab” star Dr. Drew Pinsky. Pinsky wrote , “I am mortified how @Lindsaylohan is getting attacked when she is so fragile and just establishing her sobriety. Not at all what she needs.” Lohan appeared to be grateful for the gesture, responding , “@ddrew thank you for your support. I appreciate it.” It was a tough day for the 24-year-old actress, who appeared to be getting her life back together after a stint in rehab that saved her from another jail term following a probation violation last year. L.A. Superior Court Judge Keith Schwartz ruled on Wednesday to revoke Lohan’s probation in her previous misdemeanor case and set bail at $40,000 — $20,000 for the felony theft charge and $20,000 for the possible probation violation. Lohan’s lawyer entered a not-guilty plea on her behalf as the judge issued a harsh admonishment. “You’re in a different situation now that a felony has been filed against you,” Schwartz said, later adding, “If you violate the law, I will remand you and set no bail.” The judge explained that Lohan wouldn’t be able to dodge jail time and post bail as she did last year after she admittedly failed a court-mandated drug test , saying, “A felony is a different situation and you’re not entitled to bail.” The judge also firmly told the starlet, “You need to follow the laws just like everybody else,” and added, “Please, don’t push your luck. I’m telling you, things will be different.” Lohan allegedly lifted the necklace from the Venice jewelry store on January 22. The store’s owner reported the theft to the Los Angeles Police Department, which later investigated the accusation and presented evidence to the district attorney’s office last week. The actress faces up to three years in prison on the felony charge. TMZ reported on Thursday that a police report it obtained appears to show that Lohan walked out of the same store with a diamond earring a few days before the incident at the center of her current case. She tried on a pair of 18-karat-gold white-diamond earrings, removed one and continued shopping while wearing a single earring. Before leaving, a clerk reminded her about the earring and Lohan admitted her mistake and returned it. That scenario could actually help Lohan if the case goes to court because it could show that the actress did not intend to commit a crime in the necklace case. Criminal defense lawyer Jacob Glucksman told MTV News on Wednesday that the case will come down to the issue of intent, which could be hard for the prosecutor’s office to prove. One of the keys to the case will be prior acts, including similar incidents in the past in which Lohan has been accused of (but never criminally charged with) keeping or taking something that didn’t belong to her. “There’s an evidence code in California [section 1101 (b)] that relates to character evidence,” Glucksman said. “It says that character evidence cannot be used to prove a person’s propensity to commit a crime. That means they can’t say that ‘Lindsay Lohan is the type of person who would commit this crime because she’s done XYZ in the past.’ ” However, Glucksman, who is not involved in the Lohan case, added that you can use prior acts to show “motive, intent, opportunity, knowledge or modus operandi,” in which case prosecutors could use the character evidence to show that she had intent to steal this time. Judge Schwartz set a February 23 hearing in the case and TMZ reported that Lohan’s attorney could try to work out a plea deal before that date. The necklace-nicking incident is the latest case in Lohan’s extensive litany of legal run-ins. The starlet was recently released from rehab after failing a court-ordered drug test and spending 2010 in and out of courtrooms and in prison for continually failing to comply with the conditions of her probation stemming from a 2007 DUI bust. Related Videos Lindsay Lohan: Crime And Punishment Related Photos Lindsay Lohan Goes To Court The Highs And Lows Of Lindsay Lohan Related Artists Lindsay Lohan
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Lindsay Lohan Posts Bail, Thanks Dr. Drew On Twitter
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