PASADENA : Todd Bridges Pleads Guilty to Drug, Weapons Charges

Former “Diff’rent Strokes” star Todd Bridges entered a surprise guilty plea Thursday to narcotics and weapons possession charges.

Bridges, 27, who pleaded not guilty in March to drug and weapons charges, appeared before Superior Court Judge Thomas W. Stover for a pretrial hearing and withdrew his earlier plea and pleaded guilty to the charges. The judge ordered a report to determine if Bridges is fit for probation and the actor was told to return to court Aug. 31 for sentencing. He remained free on $10,000 bail.

Bridges faces up to five years in prison. If the report on him is favorable, he could be placed on five years probation. The reason for the change in pleas was not given by Bridges or his attorney, Johnnie Cochran.

Bridges was arrested Dec. 29 after Burbank police allegedly found 1 1/2 grams of methamphetamines and a loaded 9-millimeter Ruger in a car he was driving. Investigators said Bridges was “engaging in activity consistent with drug trafficking,” said Sgt. Don Goldberg.