Gary Coleman Pleads Innocent

Tue., Aug. 25, 1998 4:10 PM PDT by

In terms of severity, it's not as bad as Dana Plato's armed-robbery rap, and it's definitely not as serious as Todd Bridges's assault-with-a-deadly-weapon charge.

Still, child star-turned-mall security guard Gary Coleman faces up to a year in jail and a $1,000 fine for allegedly slugging a bus driver. On Tuesday, he pleaded innocent to the misdemeanor assault and battery charges stemming from that fight.

With the Inglewood Municipal Court proceeding, Coleman completed a bizarre and unpleasant trifecta--now, all three kid actors from NBC's Diff'rent Strokes have been brought up on criminal charges.

Coleman wasn't at the courthouse for his arraignment Tuesday--he didn't have to be, his lawyer entered the plea.

The onetime Arnold Jackson got into trouble back July 30, while shopping for a bulletproof vest at a Los Angeles-area uniform shop.

That's when Tracy Fields, a full-grown L.A. bus driver, approached the sub-five-foot Coleman and asked for his autograph. He signed his name for her.

Fields claims that she subsequently asked Coleman to make the note more personal, only to see him tear it up in disgust.

She then told Coleman it was precisely that kind of attitude that caused his acting career to nose dive. And it was at that point, Fields claims, that Coleman walked over to her and walloped her in the eye.

Fields has filed a $1 million civil suit against Coleman, alleging she's still suffering from headaches and muscle spasms due to the brawl.

Coleman's publicist has claimed it was Fields who swung first. Coleman's lawyer calls Fields' claims "a thinly veiled attempt to use Gary's celebrity status to gain fame and fortune by filing a frivolous lawsuit."

A pretrial hearing for the criminal case is set for October 20.

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