Actress Amy Locane, who played Sandy Harling in Melrose Place, will be going back to prison for the 2010 fatal drunk driving crash that killed 60-year-old Helene Seeman. A New Jersey judge ruled that Locane’s original jail sentence was too lenient. Locane, 48, was convicted for vehicular manslaughter and other charges related to the crash. She has already served over two years in prison.
On Thursday, New Jersey Superior Court Judge Angela Borkowski sentenced Locane to eight years in state prison, arguing that Locane has not fully taken responsibility for her guilt in the crash, reports the Associated Press. Her attorney, James Wronko, said Locane will be in prison for over four years before she is eligible for parole. During the hearing, Locane read another apology to the Seeman family before she was taken into custody.
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In June 2019, Locane’s vehicle crashed into the car being driven by Fred Seeman and his wife, Helene Seeman, who was killed. Fred suffered serious injuries and attended Thursday’s hearing. He said Locane continues to shift blame, which “shows contempt for this court and the jury that rendered the verdict.” Borkowski agreed, telling Locane she made a “conscious decision” to keep drinking the night of the crash and did not get a ride, even though she knew she should have. “If you hadn’t gotten behind the wheel of your vehicle on this night, the incident never would have happened,” the judge said.
Locane’s attorney said the new sentence was “outrageous,” and Locane has “always taken full responsibility.” Wronko said Borkowski did not consider that the actress is sober and counsels others battling alcohol abuse. Locane has 45 days to appeal the sentence. Wronko has argued that the resentencing was a case of double jeopardy since Locane has already served a previous sentence.
When Locane was first charged in 2010, she faced five to 10 years in prison for the most severe charge. In 2013, a trial judge sentenced her to three years, far less than what prosecutors asked for. An appeals court ruled the judge make an error with the sentence, but he refused to change it. In 2019, another judge sentenced her to five years, but the appeals court set another resentencing because the judge did not follow guidelines.
In 2017, Locane told NJ.com she was “terrified” about the idea of spending more time in prison. She said she was focusing on being a mother to her two children and staying sober. “I want to help people not make the same mistake I made,” she said. “I want to warn the youth about the dangers of drinking and driving. Everybody thinks it’s not going to happen to them, including myself.”
