Wrong-way spin earns Richie four days in jail

Nicole Richie and boyfriend Joel Madden enter court. (Nick Ut/Associated Press)

Nicole Richie pleaded guilty yesterday to driving under the influence of drugs and was sentenced to four days in jail and fined by a court commissioner who said she was lucky nobody was killed when she drove the wrong way on a freeway. Richie was subdued and somber as she was lectured about her driving. She entered court on the arm of boyfriend Joel Madden. Richie, who's rumored to be pregnant but has not confirmed it, stood before the judge and softly answered "guilty" when asked how she pleaded to the misdemeanor charge. The 25-year-old daughter of pop singer Lionel Richie initially pleaded not guilty in February. She nodded when asked if she understood terms of the plea agreement (including 90 hours in jail and a fine of $2,048) worked out between her lawyers and prosecutors. Superior Court Commissioner Steven K. Lubell also gave Richie three years of probation and warned that she would go to county jail for a year if she violates it. (AP)

Whoopi, Shepherd to join 'The View'?

ABC's daytime show "The View" appears close to adding Whoopi Goldberg and Sherri Shepherd as regular cast members. The two were in final negotiations to join the show, the Los Angeles Times reported yesterday. Goldberg, 51, would give "The View" creator Barbara Walters a big name to replace Rosie O'Donnell. In less than a year on the show, the brash O'Donnell was a never-ending source of headlines for her feuds with Donald Trump and costar Elisabeth Hasselbeck. Goldberg is one of the few performers to earn Emmy, Grammy, Tony, and Academy awards, and could be expected to take the moderator role filled by O'Donnell. Shepherd, 40, has been a guest host on "The View" more than a dozen times, five times this month alone. With Hasselbeck and Joy Behar, the cast changes would give the show a full complement of regulars for the first time since last summer, when Star Jones Reynolds left amid acrimony. (AP)

Imus settlement may be in works

The legal struggle between Don Imus and CBS Radio is nearing a settlement that would preempt the dismissed DJ's threatened $120 million breach of contract suit against his former employer, a person familiar with the case said yesterday. While neither Imus's attorney nor CBS Radio would comment on any aspect of the case, the person said the two sides were in the process of reaching an agreement. The person, who spoke to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity, is not authorized to speak publicly about the dispute. It was unclear if a deal would return Imus to the airwaves. (AP)

Britney's guard to be charged

A bodyguard for Britney Spears must face a battery charge after he scuffled with two men trying to photograph the singer and her young sons at a Las Vegas Strip resort, police said yesterday. The bodyguard, Cesar Julio Camera, 37, was accused of grabbing and punching one photographer and pushing another into a wall Thursday at the spa at the Wynn Las Vegas hotel-casino. No serious injuries resulted, police said. Neither Spears, 25, nor her children were reported to have been hurt. (AP)

New babies abound

"The Bachelorette" star Trista Sutter, who met and married her husband, Ryan, through the ABC show, gave birth on Thursday to their first child, Maxwell Alston Sutter, according to Us magazine. Trista told Us yesterday, "He's perfect and beautiful, and everyone's doing great." The little one weighed in at 5 pounds, 3 ounces, and was born at the Vail Valley Medical Center in Vail, Colo., where the Sutters have lived since their December 2003 wedding. (Us Weekly) In other baby news, Naomi Watts has given birth to a baby boy. Alexander Pete Schreiber was born Wednesday in Los Angeles and weighed 8 pounds, 4 ounces, Watts's publicist, Robin Baum, said Thursday. It's the first child for the Australian actress and her boyfriend, Liev Schreiber. Watts, 38, and Schreiber, 39, costarred in last year's "The Painted Veil." (AP)