Shia LaBeouf sentenced to probation

Actor Shia LaBeouf has been sentenced to probation after pleading guilty to assaulting three people outside a New Orleans bar during Mardi Gras celebrations.

According to the verdict, LaBeouf will have to attend an alcoholism treatment program, his lawyer Sara Czerwinski said.

The actor, best known for his roles in the films "Transformers" and "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," had previously been released on bail after his arrest near the historic French Quarter in New Orleans.

Footage of the incident from February 17 shows a shirtless LaBeouf outside a bar pushing one person to the ground and punching another in the face, "possibly causing a dislocated nose," according to a police report.

Police also stated that the actor used homophobic slurs repeatedly, including during his arrest.

LaBeouf pleaded guilty to three counts of simple assault.

Orleans County Judge Juana Marin-Lombard sentenced him to six months in prison, suspended, with two years of probation.

He was also banned from approaching the victims and the bar in front of which the incident occurred.

His lawyer said Labaf wanted to "take responsibility for his part of what happened," describing the incident as "a minor fight in a bar during Mardi Gras."

She added that "there is no evidence that the incident was motivated by prejudice or hatred."

District Attorney Jason Williams said his prosecutor's office consulted with the victims before offering the plea agreement.

Local entertainer Jeffrey Damnit, identified by police as Jeffrey Klein, said he was one of the people LaBeouf attacked.

He claims that the actor pushed him from behind in a bar earlier that evening, hurling homophobic slurs and death threats.

The injured party's lawyer said his client hopes that LaBeouf's behavior will improve after addiction treatment.

"In New Orleans, we are all equal, we all need to feel safe and we don't treat people differently because of their fame," said attorney Michael Kennedy.

After being charged in February, a judge ordered LaBeouf to return to rehab for alcohol and drug problems.

A few days later, the actor denied having a problem with alcohol in an interview with journalist and YouTuber Andrew Callaghan.

On that occasion, he said he doubted that rehabilitation could help him, stating that the causes of his aggressive behavior during Mardi Gras were more related to "anger and ego" than alcohol.

In the same interview, LaBeouf stirred up further controversy by stating that "big gay men scare him."

"When I'm standing alone and there are three gay guys next to me touching my leg, I get scared. I'm sorry. If that's homophobia, then that's how I am," he said.