( CNN ) -- Rapper and reality TV star Flavor Flav pleaded guilty to misdemeanor domestic violence charges in Las Vegas Monday . The plea deal allows the Public Enemy hype man to avoid a trial on felony charges , which could have sent him to prison for several years . Instead , Flav -- real name William Jonathan Drayton Jr. -- must stay out of trouble during a year of probation and attend 12 domestic counseling sessions with his longtime girlfriend 's teenage son . He was arrested after an argument involving a kitchen knife in his Las Vegas home in October 2012 . Flav , 55 , was initially charged with child abuse , assault with a deadly weapon and battery domestic violence . Las Vegas prosecutors agreed to reduce the charges to two misdemeanors counts , including attempted battery with substantial bodily harm and battery constituting domestic violence , according to Tess Driver , spokeswoman for the Clark County , Nevada , district attorney . Along with the year of probation and counseling requirement , he was given credit for the time he served in jail after he was arrested and before he was released on bond , Driver said . Although he gained fame with the groundbreaking rap group Public Enemy starting in the late 1980s , Flav , with his collection of clock necklaces , became a reality TV star over the last decade . He began as a cast member of VH1 's `` Surreal Life '' in 2004 , which spawned `` Strange Love '' in 2005 and three seasons of `` Flavor of Love '' from 2006 to 2008 .
Flavor Flav avoids a trial on felony charges with misdemeanor plea . The rapper was arrested after an argument at his Las Vegas home in October 2012 . Sentence includes domestic counseling with his girlfriend 's teen son . He gained fame as Public Enemy 's hype man , but now makes reality TV shows .