According to J. Michael Flanagan, the lawyer of Britney Spears, the pop singer; trial set for next week is prepared to go to trial in her misdemeanor driving-without-license case, after rejecting a plea offer of a year’s probation and a $150 fine. Flanagan said that the plea deal was too harsh, suggesting that Spears was receiving tougher treatment than non-celebrity defendants.

Reacting to this, city attorney’s office spokesman said: “We’re proceeding with this case like we would any other.”

Flanagan said during a Los Angeles court hearing that Spears was being targeted because she’s a celebrity. She doesn’t deserve even a minor criminal conviction on her record. He added: “It should be an infraction. It’s kind of mind-boggling that they want to convict her of a misdemeanor.”

Spears has been accused of driving without a license in a traffic incident last summer. The charge stems from an August 2007 incident in which Spears struck a parked car and then left the scene.

Flanagan said Spears had a valid license from Louisiana, her home state, at the time and subsequently got a California license.

An appeals court has rejected Spears’ efforts to dismiss the misdemeanor charge and put the case on hold. Flanagan had said in court papers that Spears, whose personal affairs are controlled by a conservatorship led by her father, was “currently unable to participate meaningfully” in the traffic case.

The trial of the 26-year-old pop singer is set for Oct. 15 in Van Nuys.