Will Britney come to her own defense?

Doing a little bit of jail time has become a rite of passage for Hollywood's wild women.

Paris ("Mom! It's not right!") Hilton finally served her jail time, but not without tantrums and tears. Nicole Richie basically did a drive-by, staying at the police station only a few hours before being released. Way to play that pregnancy card, Nic! Lindsay Lohan's lawyers have successfully pleaded her case and she will probably serve only a short jail sentence. Like, a day.

But Britney Spears may not be so lucky. On Sept. 20, she was charged with a hit-and-run (a car, not a person) and driving without a valid California license, both stemming from an Aug. 6 incident. She's skedded to be arraigned Oct. 10. But without a very, very good lawyer, she could get a year in jail. Now that's worth crying about it!

Attorney Sorrell Trope, who has repped Nicole Kidman and Nicolas Cage, is now handling Spears' bitter custody dispute with Kevin Federline. But heck, he may not last until Oct. 10. In the past few months, two of her lawyers, a manager, a hairdresser and a bodyguard have either quit or been fired.

I wonder if Britney will decide to act as her own lawyer. After all, she did her own hair and chose her own skimpy costume for that VMA comeback. And look how well that turned out.

Photo credit: Britney's in the drivers seat! Fasten your seatbelts and prepare for yet another train wreck!
C. Wolfe/FilmMagic