AC/DC’s Phil Rudd Pleads Not Guilty To Possesion Of Alcohol

Phil Rudd, long time drummer for AC/DC, is becoming a regular feature at one of his local venues. If you live in Tauranga, New Zealand, you often can find him at your local courthouse.

Rudd has been forbidden to drink alcohol since June 26, a condition of his detention since entering a plea of guilty for drug possession and threatening to kill a former employee. The original sentence handed down to the 61-year-old musician for the serious charges in addition to not being able to drink alcoholic beverages was eight months house arrest. Rudd has stayed put since, but Phil has now plead not guilty to previously unspecified charges of possessing and consuming alcohol, according to a report by The Guardian. If the judge does find that Rudd is, in fact, in violation of his sentence, he could face further penalties including extension of his house arrest, or possibly even jail time. Rudd will be allowed to remain at home on bail until November, when the actual hearing on the violation will be held.

Reporters were very concerned as to whether or not Phil Rudd was nervous when he walked into courtroom Monday morning. The Hollywood Reporter says Phil insisted that he was not.

“No, the only thing I’m nervous about is I don’t, I don’t actually don’t know what’s going on.”

Phil Rudd, like a long tradition of celebrities before him, is starting to become known for his antics outside of the courtroom. Rudd’s lawyers quickly shuffled him into a car after he was asked how he was going to be spending the rest of his time on bail. “Self-Improvement” was his answer. Other examples of Phil’s behavior outside of the courtroom include riding piggyback on a security guard, and the traditional double middle fingers to members of the press.

While in court, Phil Rudd reconfirmed his previous charges acknowledging not only that he had personally threatened to kill his employee, but also that the court summarized his charges as offering material wealth as well as cash to an acquaintance to have his former employee “taken out”.

While AC/DC has made no definitive statement as to whether or not Phil Rudd will continue to drum for the band, Rudd himself certainly has designs on returning.

“I’m going back to work with AC/DC and I don’t care who likes it or who doesn’t…I want my job back and I want my reputation back.”

AC/DC is currently touring with a drummer from Wales named Chris Slade, and will continue to use Slade instead of Phil Rudd when it tours through New Zealand.

[Photo by Joel Ford/Getty Images]