AC/DC drummer Phil Rudd pleads not guilty to charges

AC/DC drummer Phil Rudd has pled not guilty to charges of drug possession and threatening to kill.

Rudd's lawyer, Paul Mabey, submitted the plea in New Zealand's Tauranga District Court on Tuesday, the New Zealand Herald reported. Rudd was not present.

The 60-year-old Aussie last appeared in court on Nov. 26, entering no plea and clowning around by jumping on the back of one of his security guards outside the courthouse. He is charged with possession of methamphetamine and marijuana and threatening to kill (with a maximum sentence of seven years); a more serious charge involving Rudd allegedly hiring a hitman to kill two people was dropped.

Rudd remains out on bail, and his status with AC/DC is unclear.

His bandmate Angus Young recently told Paste BN that Rudd had been acting erratically leading up to his November arrest, missing promotional video and photo shoots with the rest of the band as it gears up for a 2015 tour. AC/DC also just released new album Rock or Bust.

"It put us in a difficult situation," says Young. "But I don't know the exact situation. ... We don't monitor each other in our down time. I can only say, from our perspective, that the guy needs to sort himself out."