Ex-Melrose Place actress shouldn't have been granted an early release from prison, judge says.
SOMERVILLE -- Somerset County Superior Court Judge Robert B. Reed admitted he erred in sentencing former "Melrose Place" actress Amy Locane-Bovenizer during a tense status conference Friday on her upcoming resentencing hearing.
Locane-Bovenizer, who was sentenced to three years in prison for a drunk-driving crash that killed Helene Seeman in June 2010, should have served an additional six months, Reed said.
"That was my error," he said.
She is expected to be resentenced on Dec. 2. Reed said he'll consider Locane-Bovenizer's post-conviction behavior in his resentencing.
Reed's controversial decision to originally sentence Locane-Bovenizer to three years in prison for the fatal crash provoked indignation from her family and the prosecution. She faced up to 15 years in prison.
In that sentence, Reed also allowed Locane-Bovenizer to be eligible for parole after serving 85 percent of her sentence, and she was released from prison on parole in June of 2015 after serving just 21/2 years.
Judge Reed acknowledged Friday that Locane-Bovenizer, 44, should've served the entire three years under sentencing guidelines.
Assistant Prosecutor Matthew Murphy said he recognized the judge's error at the time but decided to file an appeal rather than correct him on the spot.
Even so, it's the initial light sentence that angered the family and prosecution and caused the state's Appellate Division to ask the judge "to comprehensively explain the reasons for the sentence."
"I beg to differ," said Judge Reed, referring to the Appellate Division's ruling that required him to explain his reasoning. "I'm free to disagree but not disobey. I'm concerned that the court is looking for specific terms that may be used. I'm more concerned with substance over form."
During the 2013 sentencing, Reed downgraded Locane-Bovenizer's conviction from a second- to a third-degree offense. He then cited the hardship the actress' incarceration would have on her two young children, including a then-4-year-old with Crohn's disease, as the reason for handing down a lesser sentence.
If the maximum penalty had been imposed -- 5 to 10 years for vehicular homicide and 3-5 years for assault by auto, she faced up to 15 years. Instead, Reed sentenced her to three years for each charge to run concurrently.
The appeals court didn't say what an appropriate sentence would be.
Victim's husband wants justice
Locane-Bovenizer's resentencing date was originally scheduled for Sept. 30 but was pushed back to Dec. 2 to give her new attorney, Somerville-based Michael Rogers, time to familiarize himself with the case.
Judge Reed is no stranger to imposing controversial sentences in high-profile cases.
In April, he sentenced Clint Benson, the son of ex-Giant Brad Benson, to probation for assault by auto in a case in which Clint Benson struck a man from behind with his pickup truck during an alcohol-fueled incident.
The prosecution filed a motion asking the judge to reconsider his sentence. During a hearing on the motion, the judge upheld his decision.
Conversely, Judge Reed sentenced an 18-year-old Montgomery man and a Warren Township woman to five years in prison for drunk-driving crashes that resulted in the death of a woman and man, respectively.
Locane-Bovenizer's blood-alcohol content was more than three times the legal limit on June 27, 2010 when her SUV crashed into a Mercury Milan turning into a driveway in Montgomery Township, prosecutors said. She was driving 53 mph in a 35 mph zone, prosecutors said.
Seeman, the passenger in the Milan, was killed in the crash, while her husband, who was driving, was critically injured.
Dave Hutchinson may be reached at dhutchinson@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @DHutch_SL. Find NJ.com on Facebook.