While Anne Heche’s fans and supporters hope for some good news about her medical condition, as she’s still in a coma at Grossman Burn Center in West Hills, per CNN, Nicki Swift spoke exclusively with defense attorney and former Los Angeles County prosecutor Joshua Ritter, currently a partner with Werksman Jackson & Quinn, LLP. We asked whether Heche’s condition would cause a delay in the legal proceedings.
“The only delay would take place at the request of Heche or her attorneys, if for example she is so injured she can’t assist in her own defense,” Ritter said, as appears to be the case. However, “if she is competent to stand trial, and hasn’t suffered some sort of brain injury, she will be on the same timeline as any other defendant, because she has the same constitutional rights as any defendant.”
We also asked Ritter how much jail time Heche might face, if she is charged with felony DUI now that the owner of the house, Lynne Mishele, has suffered injuries from debris and smoke related to the crash, according to Fox News. Not to mention the mental and emotional trauma she experienced as Mishele and her pets (two dogs and a turtle) narrowly escaped the collision, per People. “It’s too early to tell,” Ritter said, as “It depends on what they ultimately charge her with. But there is definitely the possibility of prison time if she is charged with a felony DUI with property damage and found guilty in court.”
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Nicki
