BOBBY BROWN PLEADS NOT GUILTY IN DUI CASE!

Bobby Brown pleaded not guilty to drunken driving Monday and was slapped with a full ban on booze due to his bad boy "profile" and "stress" in his life.

"Mr. Brown is not to consume anything of an alcoholic nature," Los Angeles County Superior Court judge Rebecca Owens said as she set his pretrial hearing for May 16.

Brown did not appear in person, and his lawyer Tiffany Feder at first accepted the no-alcohol restriction before returning an hour later to fight it.

She argued the limitation was overkill since his blood alcohol level "wasn't excessively high" at the time of his arrest last month and he had no prior DUIs in California.

"We believe he has an extensive history of substance abuse," responded city prosecutor Diego Edber. "Even though it may not be current, (the restriction is) probably not a bad idea for public safety."

The judge kept the order in place.

"It is a standard condition in this court when a defendant has this type of profile, and he is under a lot of stress at this point," Owens said. "It looks like your client has had a history (using) substances when under pressure. So it is going to remain."

Feder entered not guilty pleas to all charges on Brown's behalf but declined to discuss his feelings about the case other than to say, "He's doing well."

The "My Prerogative" singer and ex-hubby of Whitney Houston was arrested March 26 after he was pulled over for talking on his cell phone and failed a field sobriety test, cops said.

"He blew 0.12," a source told the Daily News, referring to Brown's breathalyzer results.

Brown, 43, is facing three misdemeanors -- including driving with a suspended license -- filed by the Los Angeles City Attorney's Office.

His two charges of driving under the influence and driving with a blood alcohol level greater than .08 are essentially merged into one for purposes of potential sentencing, prosecutors said.

"His total exposure is up to a year (in jail) and $1,000 for each count," City Attorney spokesman Frank Mateljan told The News.

Brown's license remains suspended by the DMV, Owens said, and he must appear in court in person next month unless he provides proof the suspension has been lifted.

Feder previously said Brown "was not driving erratically" at the time of his arrest and was taking the case "seriously."

A source in Brown's camp claimed the singer had liquor in his system from drinking he did before he woke up the morning of his arrest.

The source said his handlers urged him to attend an AA meeting immediately to help his case.

Houston's close pal Kim Burrell voiced support for Brown in an exclusive interview with The News.

"He has my full 100% support to get better," Burrell, the gospel singer who received a voicemail from Houston less than two hours before she died, told The News.

"He spent 17 years in a relationship and marriage with Whitney, so why wouldn't he be going through some difficult times right now?" she said.

Burrell, who also sang at the superstar's funeral, said grieving people sometimes act without thinking.

"He happens to be a public person who's getting through a private moment, and the whole world is hearing about it," she said. "He's coping, and unfortunately everything is raised up a notch because of Whitney's death."

Brown, who's due to marry the mother of his youngest child in the coming weeks, was busted for drunk driving in 1996 and sentenced to five days behind bars after crashing Houston's Porsche with a blood-alcohol level nearly three times the legal limit.

He served more jail time in 2000 after a court-ordered drug test came back dirty with cocaine.

You telling Bobby to stay clean till his next court date

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