Big Picture

Kate Upton Takes Cover Plus, Nicole Kidman hangs out with her family and Bradley Cooper is a grizzly guy. The latest pics!

MORE PHOTOS +

Hello, you either have JavaScript turned off or an old version of Adobe's Flash Player. Get the latest Flash player.

Fashion Police

Angelina: Going Grey! Plus, Christina Hendricks, Vanessa Hudgens, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Michelle Williams and Kristen Wiig. Rate the highs and lows!

MORE PHOTOS +

Top Galleries

MORE PHOTOS +

Our Partners

Hello, you either have JavaScript turned off or an old version of Adobe's Flash Player. Get the latest Flash player.

Anastasio Arraigned on Drug Count

Fri., Jan. 5, 2007 12:13 PM PST by Josh Grossberg

This isn't the kind of jam Phish's former frontman is used to.

Apparently figuring he might as well get it over with, Trey Anastasio turned up one week early in an upstate New York court and pleaded not guilty Thursday to charges stemming from his December bust for driving under the influence of prescription medication.

All told, Anastasio, 42, is facing a third-degree count of aggravated unlicensed operation, seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance and driving while intoxicated. Prosecutors say the misdemeanor possession charge could be bumped up to a felony due to the virtual cornucopia of drugs the rocker had on him at the time of his arrest.

Anastasio's next court appearance is set for Feb. 14, at which time prosecutors, after discussions with his attorneys, will decide whether to call a grand jury to determine whether more serious charges be filed or whether to recommend drug treatment.

The musician, born Ernest Josepee Anastasio III, was initially scheduled for arraignment on Jan. 10, but the court gives those charged the option of showing up earlier. Following the hearing, he left without speaking to reporters, escaping into a black limo waiting outside the courthouse.

Phish's principal songwriter and band leader was headed back to his home in Richmond, Vermont, in the wee hours of Dec. 15 when police in the town of White Hall pulled him over after watching his SUV drifting across the road. Suspecting the singer-guitarist was under the influence of narcotics, officers administered a field sobriety test, which he flubbed.

A search of Anastasio's vehicle turned up the painkillers hydrocodone and Percocet along with the anti-anxiety medication Xanax—all of which were prescribed under another person's name.

Washington County District Attorney Kevin Kortright told the Albany Times Union that the "Sample in a Jar" rocker was carrying more than 60 pills, plus another substance that he and Whitehall Police Chief Richard LaChapelle refused to identify.

Anastasio's driver's license had already been suspended due to a previous traffic violation, which he failed to answer.

Since the Phish mastermind has a relatively clean record, Kortright said Anastasio would more than likely be ordered into rehab.

"It sounds like he has a problem with abuse," the D.A. told the newspaper. "We usually do a treatment, rather than jail or prison, but in the end, that will be up to him."

An inside source told E! Online that after Phish disbanded in 2004, Anastasio quietly sought treatment for drug abuse.

Immediately following his arrest, Anastasio expressed regret over the incident.

"I feel terrible about what happened last night, and I am deeply sorry for any embarrassment I have caused my friends, family and fans," he said in a statement.

Since Phish went belly up, Anastasio has been charting new waters as a solo artist.

In the fall, he released his latest album, Bar 17, on his own label, Rubber Jungle Records, and wrapped up a successful tour with a New Year's Eve blowout at the House of Blues in Atlantic City, New Jersey.