Judge Orders Newspaper to ID Commenter re Manslaughter Case Against Former 'Melrose Place' Actress
A judge in New Jersey yesterday ordered the Newark Star-Ledger to identify an anonymous commenter who said he witnessed a fatal car crash that resulted in an aggravated manslaughter charge against actress Amy Locane-Bovenizer, 39, who starred in the original Melrose Place television series.
The comment by the claimed witness said authorities were “lying about the facts” in the Somerset County Superior Court case, the Associated Press reported.
It isn’t clear whether the newspaper may be considering an appeal.
Defense lawyer Blair Zwillman of Wilentz Goldman and Spitzer.had argued that disclosure of the anonymous commenter’s identity by the newspaper is unnecessary because he already knew, and had told prosecutors in January, that “defense44” was, in fact, Locane-Bovenizer’s husband, Mark Bovenizer, reports the Courier News.
However, Superior Court Judge Angela Borkowski said the information is relevant and material to the continuing criminal investigation of the accident.
Earlier coverage:
Star-Ledger: “Actress charged in deadly crash”
New York Daily News: “Amy Locane-Bovenizer, former ‘Melrose Place’ star, indicted on aggravated manslaughter charge”
