Slater turns down plea bargain

Christian Slater rejected a plea bargain deal from New York City prosecutors Thursday on a charge of allegedly groping a woman.

Slater was charged with forcible touching -- a misdemeanor that carries up to one year in jail -- after he allegedly walked up behind a woman and grabbed her buttocks as she was buying a soda in a small grocery store on Manhattan’s Upper East Side in the early morning of May 31.

“We believe this case warrants dismissal,” lawyer Eric Franz said in turning down a proposal that Slater perform three days of community service. Under the plea bargain offer, Slater would have pleaded guilty to a charge of second-degree harassment in return for the community service.

The 35-year-old actor was ordered to return to court Sept. 19.