LOS ANGELES – Lindsay Lohan’s litigious rollercoaster ride continues to take more twists and turns as the scheduled start of her “case of the stolen necklace” trial approaches.
In a Friday pre-trial hearing, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Stephanie Sautner reduced the felony theft charge against Lohan, for allegedly stealing a $2,500 necklace from a Venice jeweler, to a misdemeanor, reported EW.com.
Any relief this news may have provided the troubled actress was short-lived, however, when the judge ruled that Lohan had still violated her parole. For this indiscretion, the judge then gave Lohan a 120-day jail sentence along with 480 hours of community service to be served in the county morgue and a Los Angeles women’s center.
People.com reports Lohan was both surprised and upset by the jail time she was given.
“She is angry because she has been working so hard on turning her life around,” Nathan Folks, a producer and close friend to Lohan, told People. “She didn’t do what they said she did. She didn’t steal that necklace.”
Lohan insiders told TMZ that the actress’s reaction to her sentence also included some choice words; she reportedly called the situation “ridiculous” and “f—ed up.”
The Los Angeles Times reports that the prosecution was equally disgruntled by the judge’s decision to change the felony charge to a misdemeanor and is considering an appeal.
“The judge abused her discretion in this case,” prosecutor Danette Meyers told The Times. “It was a felony filing because the defendant was on probation…. She has violated on numerous occasions … the evidence was incredibly strong.”
Lohan was reportedly taken from the court to Lynwood Correctional Facility where she spent about five hours before posting $75,000 bail, according to TMZ.
The judge set the trial date for the misdemeanor charge for June 3 and a preliminary hearing date is set for May 11, according to EW. For the misdemeanor charge Lohan could face up to a year in jail while a conviction for the dropped felony could have landed her behind bars for three years.
