Battery Count Filed Against Zsa Zsa Gabor

Zsa Zsa Gabor was charged Friday with misdemeanor battery on a Beverly Hills police officer, who claimed that he was slapped by the Hungarian-born actress after stopping her white Rolls-Royce for having out-of-date license tags.

The Los Angeles County district attorney’s office also accused Gabor of disobeying a lawful order of a police officer and driving with an expired driver’s license--both misdemeanors.

If convicted on the battery charge, Gabor could face a maximum penalty of a year in jail and a $2,000 fine, said Deputy Dist. Atty. Elden Fox, who filed the complaint. The other misdemeanor charges carry a maximum penalty of six months in jail and a $1,000 fine.

In addition to these charges, Gabor was accused of carrying an open alcoholic beverage container in a car and driving with an expired registration--infractions subject to fines.

Gabor, 70, was arrested June 14 on La Cienega Boulevard by motorcycle officer Paul Kramer, who said he first stopped her for expired license tags and was then forced to pull her over again at Olympic Boulevard and Le Doux Road when she “took off.”

Kramer said that when he ordered Gabor to get out of her car the second time she slapped his face. Two days later, a still angry Gabor displayed bruises at a press conference and declared that she was “standing up for the battered women of America.”

Her attorney, William T. Graysen, said Friday that Gabor intends to plead innocent and ask for a speedy trial.

“My client’s defense is going to be . . . that Officer Kramer was excessively violent in his dealings with Miss Gabor, and she used her right of self defense to defend herself,” Graysen said.

Efforts to reach Kramer through the Beverly Hills Police Department were unsuccessful.