Houston: Home Free?

By Caitlin O'toole

10/20/1997 at 12:00 AM EDT

The marijuana-possession case against pop diva Whitney Houston, 37, may be dropped in three months if she plays her cards right, according to a lawyer for the singer. The terms state that Houston, who faced a possible penalty of 30 days in jail and a $1,000 fine, must meet certain probation-like conditions (translation: have no other brushes with the law) in order for the case to be dismissed and erased from her record. Honolulu attorney Brook Hart and lawyers from Houston's home state of New Jersey appeared on Houston's behalf at a hearing Thursday in state district court in Kona. The Grammy-winning star was not present. The petty misdemeanor charge stemmed from a Jan. 11 incident at Keahole-Kona International Airport on Hawaii Island. A security guard seized Houston's handbag, and police said it contained half an ounce of marijuana.