'L&HH' Star Tommie Lee Was Trying to Go Sober Before Drunk Court Appearance

Tommie Lee shocked her closest friends when she showed up to court drunk ... they say she was in the process of getting sober before her recent relapse.

We broke the story ... the former 'Love & Hip Hop' star is back in jail for being wasted during a court hearing in her child abuse criminal case. We're told her BAC was 0.16 -- double the legal limit.

Sources close to Tommie tell TMZ ... she was trying her best to sober up in recent weeks, staying away from alcohol even though she was surrounded by vices. We're told Tommie was going out with friends who were drinking, and even stayed at a friend's house with a stocked bar inside, but she stayed off the booze.

But, Tommie fell off the wagon before last week's court appearance ... and our sources claim the stress of the case caused her relapse. She was indicted on child abuse charges earlier this year, and she's facing up to 54 years in jail if convicted on all 7 charges.