Ross made her name in The Supremes

She avoided a court appearance and was allowed to enter her plea over the telephone from New York.

Her lawyer said Ross, 59, would serve her term at a prison near her Los Angeles home.

The star was arrested in December 2002 after tests indicated she was twice over the drink-drive limit.

The sentence will have to be served by 9 March, and she will also have to undergo at least 36 hours of alcohol abuse treatment before 9 August.

"She is very pleased to have this behind her," said her lawyer, Stephen Paul Barnard.

"She was willing to accept a plea along these lines a long time ago."

Swerving

She was stopped by police in Tucson, Arizona after reports of a car swerving and travelling on the wrong side of the road.

Officers at the scene reported that her eyes were watery and bloodshot and she fell over whilst being questioned.

A widely-aired videotape of the arrest shows her pleading with the officers not to make public the details of her arrest.

Ross tried to have the results of a breath test dismissed. When that failed, she sought a plea agreement preventing a high profile trial from taking place.

Troubled record

Ross first found fame with The Supremes, signed by Motown Records, scoring hits with Where Did Our Love Go?, Stop in the Name of Love and My World Is Empty Without You before she found renewed fame as a solo artist in the 1970s.

Hits like Ain't No Mountain High Enough were followed by a 1980s revival with Chain Reaction.

But she has had a history of personal problems, leading her to check into rehabilitation centre before her arrest.

In September 1999, Ms Ross was detained for about five hours in London over an alleged assault on a security guard at Heathrow Airport, although she was released without charge.