[Intellivision]

Remember this guy's arrest back in March?

 

Ex-Village People singer gets probation on drug charges
John Coté, Chronicle Staff Writer
Tuesday, September 5, 2006

 

(09-05) 11:06 PDT REDWOOD CITY -- A San Mateo County judge today decided against prison time for former Village People lead singer and "cop" Victor Willis, sentencing the faded disco star to three years probation and drug treatment after he pleaded no contest to drug charges.
Judge Mark Forcum directed Willis to complete at least a 6-month drug treatment program or face three years and eight months in prison.
Willis' attorney, Mark Geragos, said his client was scheduled to be released from the San Mateo County jail today and then would fly to Southern California, where he will enroll in a 30-day program at the Betty Ford clinic followed by a 6-month treatment program in Long Beach.
"Obviously we're gratified that Judge Forcum went out on a limb and gave him another chance," Geragos said outside a Redwood City courtroom. "I think he sees Victor's enormous potential and senses that this time he has at least what appears to be a genuine commitment to keeping his sobriety."
Willis, who was the "cop" character in the famed disco group and co-wrote such hits as "Y.M.C.A." and "Macho Man," pleaded no contest in July as part of a deal that covered three different cases involving drug and weapons charges.
Willis and a female companion were arrested after a traffic stop in South San Francisco in March. Both initially gave false names to police, and officers later found a small amount of cocaine and drug paraphernalia, prosecutors said.
At the time, there was an arrest warrant out for Willis after he failed to appear for sentencing on a September conviction on drug and weapons charges stemming from a July 2005 traffic stop in Daly City, when police found Willis had 3 grams of cocaine and a loaded .45-caliber handgun. He also faced a third case for a probation violation.
Under the plea deal, Willis could have received one of two sentences: two years in state prison or six months in county jail followed by a drug-treatment program. With credit for time already served, Willis' 6-months in jail has been completed. Willis, in a statement on his Web site, victorwillisworld.com, has said he plans to release a book about his life and begin a tour next year.