Snoop Dogg denies charges

A lawyer for rapper Snoop Dogg on Wednesday entered for his client a not guilty plea to charges of carrying an illegal weapon at John Wayne Airport.

The rap star, whose legal name is Cordozar Calvin Broadus, was not present for the proceedings in Orange County Superior Court in Santa Ana. He faces up to three years in prison if convicted of the felony charges.

Broadus, 35, of Sherman Oaks, was detained at John Wayne Airport by county sheriff’s deputies on Sept. 27 after airport screeners found a collapsible baton in his laptop case. The district attorney’s office has called the 20-inch baton an illegal weapon, but Broadus and his lawyer maintain that it was only a prop he intended to use filming a video in New York.

Broadus’ lawyer Daniel Etra said in a later interview that he and his client were fighting the charges all the way.

“I believe the not guilty plea says it all,” Etra said. “It wasn’t a weapon; it was a prop. We’re hoping to convince the D.A. of that, but if not we’ll try it in court and win.”

Broadus’ next court date is a pretrial appearance April 5.

The John Wayne Airport incident was not Broadus’ only recent brush with the law. He was arrested at Bob Hope Airport in Burbank on Oct. 26 on suspicion of possessing a gun and transportation of marijuana. He was arrested on Nov. 28 in Burbank outside NBC studios, where he had appeared on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno,” on suspicion of possession of cocaine and firearms, as well as having a false compartment in his vehicle.

The Los Angeles district attorney’s office has yet to file charges in those investigations.