CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. - Lindsay Lohan's father can avoid prosecution on a misdemeanour charge of aggravated harassment if he stays out of trouble for the next year.

That's the ruling of a Suffolk County judge, who agreed Tuesday to postpone the case against Michael Lohan. The one-year delay is known as an "adjournment in contemplation of dismissal."

Prosecutors say Lohan was charged after he allegedly called his 34-year-old girlfriend, Erin Muller, threatening to kill himself and her if she left him.

His lawyer, Anthony Grandinette, did not immediately comment.

Lohan divorced Dina Lohan after a 22-year marriage in 2007. That same year, he was released from prison after serving nearly two years for attempted assault and driving while intoxicated.

The actress reportedly has no contact with her father.