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Former New York Mets outfielder Lenny Dykstra may be sentenced on Monday if a judge rejects his motion to withdraw a no-contest plea on charges of grand theft auto and providing a false financial statement.
Dykstra (49) is seeking to withdraw his plea but faces up to four years in state prison if it’s not granted. Dykstra initially pleaded not guilty to 25 counts after police arrested him and found cocaine, Ecstasy and synthetic human growth hormone at his Los Angeles home last April.
Dykstra and two co-defendants are accused of trying to lease and then sell high-end cars from several car dealerships by claiming credit through a phony business. His accountant Robert Hymers pleaded no contest to one count of identity theft, while Christopher Gavanis pleaded no contest to one count of filing a false financial statement. They are both awaiting sentencing.
Dykstra changed his plea in October to no contest and in exchange prosecutors dropped 21 counts.
He has had a series of legal problems over the past year. He faces federal bankruptcy charges and is scheduled to stand trial this summer.
Dykstra (who bought a mansion once owned by hockey star Wayne Gretzky) filed for bankruptcy three years ago, claiming he owed more than $31 million and had only $50.000 in assets. Federal prosecutors said that after filing, Dykstra hid, sold or destroyed more than $400.000 worth of items from the $18,5 million mansion without permission of a bankruptcy trustee.
Dykstra also has pleaded not guilty to indecent exposure charges for allegedly exposing himself to women he met on Craigslist.
The ex-major leaguer has been in a sober living facility, according to court documents.

Lenny Dykstra.

Disgraced ex-New York Mets outfielder Lenny Dykstra on Monday was sentenced to three years in a California state prison after pleading no contest to car theft and providing a false financial statement.
Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Cynthia Ulfig sentenced Dykstra after refusing to allow him to withdraw his plea and said the scam to lease high-end automobiles from dealerships by providing fraudulent information and claiming credit through a phony business showed sophistication and extensive planning.
“He obviously didn’t have the money to get the vehicles” – Ulfig said. “His conduct was indeed criminal.”
Dykstra (49) has had a series of recent legal troubles and the prison sentence is part of a post-career downward spiral for the stocky slugger known as “Nails” that has included a stint at a rehabilitation facility for alcoholics.
In a rambling and impassioned plea for probation, Dykstra said he has tried to make amends for his past transgressions and said he would be cleared of any wrongdoing if his motion to withdraw his plea was granted.
“I’m doing everything in my power to be a better person” – he said.
Dykstra, wearing a gray suit with a blue shirt, was immediately remanded to custody as he walked into the court’s back room, hands in his pockets. Dykstra has earned nearly a year’s worth of credit toward his sentence for time already served.
Following the hearing, defense attorney Andrew Flier said Dykstra was singled out because he’s a celebrity.
“No way this wasn’t a probationary case” – Flier said. “To give him state prison is outrageous. I find it disgusting.”

Dykstra (who faced up to a four-year sentence) must serve his time in state prison. He had pleaded no contest to grand theft auto and filing a false financial statement in connection with a scheme to use somebody else’s paperwork to steal or lease several new cars, according to court records.
He was immediately taken into custody after the sentencing.
In delivering the sentence, L.A. County Superior Court Judge Cynthia Ulfig said the effort to steal cars showed “sophistication, planning.” And prosecutors had argued that he did not exhibit any remorse toward his victims.
“Mr. Dykstra might not believe he is a criminal, but his actions have been criminal” – she said, invoking baseball terminology such as “strikes” and “home run” to underscore her point.
Her sentence came after Dykstra’s lawyer unsuccessfully urged the court to withdraw the no contest plea. Bult Ulfig said Dykstra was given ample due process and he had numerous opportunities to show evidence that he was innocent.
After she rejected the plea withdrawal, Dykstra addressed the court, making a rambling and repetitive speech requesting leniency.
“Did I do something I’m not proud of? Yes” – Dykstra said. “Am I a criminal? No.”
During the statement, he apologized to his family and told the judge he had voluntarily entered drug rehab. He did not, however, apologize to the victims, including the man whose identity he stole in an effort to steal the cars.
In January 2011, Dykstra, his accountant Robert Hymers (27) and friend Christopher Gavanis (30) tried to lease high-end automobiles from several area dealerships by allegedly providing fraudulent information and claiming credit through a phony business, prosecutors said.
According to prosecutors, Dykstra and Hymers allegedly provided information from a man who they said was a co-signer at two dealerships, even though they were not authorized to use his name.
Prosecutors said Dykstra failed in his initial attempts to lease a new Mercedes-Benz S-550 and new Cadillac, but the men succeeded in obtaining a Ford Flex, a Lincoln and a Ford Mustang.