Backstreet Boy Nick Carter has pleaded innocent to two drunken driving-related charges in a California incident -- by phone.

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The plea actually was phoned in by Carter's lawyer, according to Mark Macaulay, spokesman for the Orange County District Attorney's Office.

Because the two counts were misdemeanors -- one for driving under the influence and the other for driving with a blood-alcohol level over 0.08 --Carter was not required to show for the arraignment, E!Online said Thursday.

The charges, which carry a maximum penalty of a $1,500 fine, probation and loss of license, stem from a March 5 arrest in Huntington Beach, Calif. The 25-year-old singer was pulled over for erratic driving and subsequently failed a field sobriety test.