Lawyers don’t think it impacted her sentence but was immature and bad form. By Gil Kaufman Lindsay Lohan at her court hearing on July 6 Photo: David McNew/ Getty Images As if further proof was needed, Lindsay Lohan cemented her bad-girl status Tuesday during a probation violation hearing by writing the message “f— u” on her fingernail . But did the profane memo on the nail of her middle finger land the formerly promising actress a harsher sentence? Legal experts contacted by MTV News don’t think so but all agreed that, at best, it was bad form, and at worst, it was another example of a young Hollywood starlet who appears to be out of control and not seriously considering the repercussions of her actions. New York attorney Benjamin Brafman — who defended Diddy in his 2001 Club New York gun case, New York Giants receiver Plaxico Burress in his 2008 gun case and was on the defense team for the 2004 Michael Jackson child-molestation trail — said sometimes celebrities are their own worst enemies in court. “If this happened the way it did, the lawyer needs to take charge,” he said. Brafman, who is not involved in the Lohan case and has no firsthand knowledge of what happened in court Tuesday, added that Lohan doesn’t seem to be doing herself any favors with these kinds of outbursts. “I don’t think that influenced [the sentence] … and [it should have] no role in the proceedings, but it’s bad form, childish and at some point, you need to grow up about stuff like this,” he said. “When you’re in a position of begging for your freedom, you don’t need to do anything to antagonize the judge who has that power over you.” Lohan, 24, was sentenced to 90 days in jail to be followed by 90 days in rehab after judge Marsha Revel determined that the “Mean Girls” star had violated her probation from a 2007 DUI case by missing weekly alcohol-education classes . Closeups of photos taken by The Associated Press revealed that Lohan had the message “f— u” imprinted on the rainbow-airbrushed nail of her middle finger, which she frequently pressed to her lips and cheek during Tuesday’s hearing. At press time, it was unclear if Lohan entered the courtroom with the profane nail tat or if she scribbled it on during the course of the nearly daylong hearing. “She’s like anybody else and she has the right of free speech,” said attorney Stacey Richman, who defended rapper Lil Wayne in a New York gun case that sent the MC to prison for a year but does not have firsthand knowledge of the Lohan case. “But you should have respect for the forum. It’s unclear who it was meant for, but the judge is a logical person and not vindictive. So whatever the judge’s decisions are, they should have to do with the violations [not the message on the nail].” If it comes out that it was meant as a coded message to the judge, Richman said there could be sanctions. “But if someone let her do that, they should know better,” she said. Lohan’s attorney did not return requests for comment at press time. Related Photos Lindsay Lohan Goes To Court The Highs And Lows Of Lindsay Lohan
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Lindsay Lohan’s Fingernail Message In Court: Legal Experts Weigh In
