Report: Ex-MEAT PUPPETS Bassist Faces Two Years In Prison

MEAT PUPPETS bassist Cris Kirkwood is facing a two-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to an assault charge in a Phoenix courtroom Monday (May 10),MTV.com reports.

Kirkwood was accused of assault with a dangerous weapon stemming from an incident in December when he was allegedly shot by a post office security guard after a brief struggle.

Pursuant to a plea agreement, prosecutors will recommend a minimal sentence when Kirkwood is sentenced on July 26, probably around 27 months, a spokesperson for the U.S. attorney's office told MTV.com. He will also have to make restitution to the victim, the amount of which will be determined at sentencing.

On December 26, 2003, Kirkwood and a woman had apparently been fighting over a parking space in front of a post office in downtown Phoenix. The woman told a guard what happened, and she and Kirkwood again began fighting in the post office with the guard trying to mediate. The guard asked Kirkwood to leave, but Kirkwood allegedly shoved the guard and then punched him, taking away the guard's collapsible baton. Kirkwood then allegedly hit the guard on the head with the baton, which led the guard to draw his handgun. He fired on Kirkwood once.

MEAT PUPPETS soared to worldwide prominence a decade ago thanks to the 1994 album "Too High to Die" and an appearance on NIRVANA's "MTV Unplugged" episode, according to Rolling Stone. The group was led by Kirkwood and his guitarist brother Curt.

Cris Kirkwood has reportedly battled substance abuse in the years since, and did not participate in the group's last album, 2000's "Golden Lies".