Lil Wayne pleads to attempted gun possession

NEW YORK — In the midst of a career surge that has made him one of rap’s biggest stars, Lil Wayne is bracing for a year behind bars after pleading guilty Thursday in a two-year-old gun case.

A glum Lil Wayne said little as he admitted illegally having a loaded gun on his tour bus in New York in 2007, moving to end a case that had churned along as he collected Grammys and gold records. He’s expected to get a year in jail at his sentencing, set for February.

But Lil Wayne still faces charges in Yuma County. He was arrested in January 2008 at a border checkpoint 78 miles east of Yuma after authorities said they found cocaine, Ecstasy and a handgun on his tour bus. He has been charged locally with one count each of possession of a narcotic drug for sale, possession of dangerous drugs, misconduct involving weapons and one count of possession of drug paraphernalia. He has plead not guilty to all the charges.

Arguably rap’s most popular artist, Lil Wayne somberly answered his judge’s questions with ‘‘yes, sir’’ and ‘‘no, sir’’ as he pleaded guilty to a felony charge of attempted criminal possession of a weapon.

He acknowledged he had a loaded .40-caliber semiautomatic gun when the bus was stopped shortly after a Manhattan concert on July 22, 2007. His lawyer had previously disputed the gun was the rapper’s, in part by questioning the reliability of a highly sensitive DNA test that prosecutors said tied him to the weapon.

State Supreme Court Justice Charles Solomon warned Lil Wayne that he wouldn’t be able later to withdraw the plea, as some people try to do.

‘‘I’m not one of those people,’’ said the rapper, who sat in court in jeans and a hooded parka. He pulled up the hood and didn’t speak as he left the courthouse with members of his entourage, who piled into four black SUVs. He’s due back in court Dec. 15 before his sentencing date, which has yet to be set.

Features editor Darin Fenger contributed to this report. He can be reached at dfenger@yumasun.com or 539-6860