An actress, known mostly for her work in the first season of Melrose Place, has been sentenced to three years in prison for a DUI-fueled crash that resulted in the death of a 60 year-old woman, as reported by The Associated Press for the New York Daily News and several media outlets.
The middle-aged blond actress, Amy Locane Bovenizer, was facing up to 10 years in prison for killing H.S. of New Jersey.
The victim's family was notably angered by the court's decision to reduce the sentence. F.S., H.S.'s widow yelled out, "What a travesty" while her son stormed out of the courtroom after telling the judge, "This is not justice."
The DUI occurred in 2010 and a jury convicted Locane Bovenizer this past November.
Having already served 81 days in prison, Locane Bovenizer will be credited for the time and will be eligible for parole in 2 ½ years. She will have no driving privileges for five years, be on probation for three years after completing her jail time and will be paying several thousand dollars in fines.
Locane Bovenizer was featured in 13 Melrose Place episodes. After leaving the show she appeared in a few feature films: "Cry-Baby", "School Ties" and "Secretary."
According to prosecutors, Locane Bovenizer's blood-alcohol level was almost three times the legal limit to drive at the time of the accident. She crashed her SUV into F.S.'s Mercury Minivan just as F.S. was pulling into the driveway of his home.
H.S. was killed and F.S. sustained serious injuries.
The defense argued that F.S.'s driving contributed to the crash. It was alleged at the trial that F.S. was making too slow a turn, making the incident an accident and not a crime. The defense also argued that a third vehicle was involved – Locane Bovenizer had rear-ended another car and the driver took off in pursuit of her down the street.
The car chase caused Locane Bovenizer to drive her vehicle 20 mph over the posted speed limit.
The judge lowered Locane Bovenizer's sentence due to hardships placed on her family. One of her two young children suffers with a serious medical and mental disability and had been deteriorating since her mother had been held in jail.
As she exited the courtroom H.L., Locane Bovenizer's mother commented, "I'm just glad her little girls will have their mother back soon."
F.S. told the court that the arguments made by the defense were like "salt on the wound" and he was further upset by the fact that Locane Bovenizer had not taken any responsibility for his wife's death.
However, Locane Bovenizer claimed that she did accept responsibility for her actions. While she looked at H.S.'s family in court she said, "I am truly sorry for all of the pain I have caused. My own suffering will never go away."
Judge Robert Reed said that his sympathy was for Locane Bovenizer's children and not for her.
F.S. commented once more as to the "mockery" of the court's decision and said, "What's one more punch in the gut?"
Charges of DUI, DWI, OUI or OWI require that you contact a DUI attorney right away. Avoiding jail time, loss of driving privileges and fines will be priorities in your attorney's plan.