Anne Heche could be jailed for up to THREE YEARS as fiery crash probed as ‘felony DUI’
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: On Friday, August 5, Anne Heche was seen racing her blue Mini Cooper down a narrow street and nearly hitting a pedestrian before crashing into a two-story home in the Mar Vista neighborhood of Los Angeles. Soon, a fire broke out and firefighters took an hour to get things under control. Heche was taken to a hospital with “severe injuries." Police believed she was driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs and a warrant was obtained for a blood sample but the actress is reportedly in a coma. She is reportedly being investigated for a 'felony DUI'.
The investigation is being escalated under a felony after Lynne Mishele, the owner of the home that Heche crashed into, claimed she was injured and needed medical assistance. According to Page Six, if found intoxicated, Heche could be charged with misdemeanor DUI hit and run. Punishments for Felony DUI in California can go up to sixteen months, two years, or three years in state prison, plus a fine of up to $1,000, mandatory interlock device for at least one year, and other potential license suspension or restriction. Defendants charged with felony DUI causing death face up to life in prison. A neighbour said that Mishele “was extremely fortunate” to survive without injuries. Police had found an alcohol cap in the cup-holder while checking pictures of Heche before the crash. “The investigation is still ongoing pending the blood result,” Officer Rosario Cervantes of the Los Angeles Police Department said.
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Legal analyst Emily D Baker, a former Los Angeles County deputy district attorney, said that it remains unclear about what led Heche to crash into the house. She added that "the actress would likely not face charges if she was having a medical emergency." Soeaking to People Magazine, Baker said, "If she drove into someone's house because something was going on and there was an intention there, it's a much different circumstance. Without more known, it's hard to evaluate. But on a standard misdemeanor DUI where no one's injured, there's generally not jail time."
"At this time Anne is in critical condition. She has a significant pulmonary injury requiring mechanical ventilation and burns that require surgical intervention. She is in a coma and has not regained consciousness since shortly after the accident," Baker added. Many eyewitness reported Heche's driving as "reckless," which Baker said could mean many things during an ongoing investigation.
Elaborating, Baker said, "It likely, at this point, goes into suspicion of DUI. If someone's going 20 miles above the speed limit in a residential area, that can be considered reckless driving. It really just depends on what's reported to police and where their investigation goes, but in something like this, they are always going to consider 'the driver could have been under the influence of drugs or alcohol."
Baker said that the charges would largely depend on the actress' legal history with driving under influence. "I don't know Anne Heche's record, but assuming she has no other DUIs, it probably would be just first-time DUI, which generally does not include jail time especially given that no one was hurt except for her," she said. "With the property damage and stuff, could they put her on probation for a longer time than you'd see in a typical DUI? Yes. Could they require more alcohol classes? Yes. Could her license be restricted for longer? Yes. But I would not anticipate, without more information, jail time."