ad info




CNN.com
 MAIN PAGE
 WORLD
 ASIANOW
 U.S.
 LOCAL
 POLITICS
 WEATHER
 BUSINESS
 SPORTS
 TECHNOLOGY
 NATURE
 ENTERTAINMENT
 BOOKS
 TRAVEL
 FOOD
 HEALTH
 STYLE
 IN-DEPTH

 Headline News brief
 daily almanac
 CNN networks
 CNN programs
 on-air transcripts
 news quiz

  CNN WEB SITES:
CNN Websites
 TIME INC. SITES:
 MORE SERVICES:
 video on demand
 video archive
 audio on demand
 news email services
 free email accounts
 desktop headlines
 pointcast
 pagenet

 DISCUSSION:
 message boards
 chat
 feedback

 SITE GUIDES:
 help
 contents
 search

 FASTER ACCESS:
 europe
 japan

 WEB SERVICES:
US

Amy Fisher, 'Long Island Lolita,' granted parole

May 6, 1999
Web posted at: 2:39 p.m. EDT (1839 GMT)


In this story:

A Mother's Day gift

Fisher apologizes

RELATED STORIES, SITES icon



NEW YORK (CNN) -- A New York State parole board granted parole on Thursday for Amy Fisher, dubbed the "Long Island Lolita," who pleaded guilty to shooting her lover's wife in the head.

Fisher, now 24, spent seven years in prison. She could be released as early as next week.

She received a five-to-15-year prison sentence in 1992 after pleading guilty to first-degree assault for shooting Mary Jo Buttafuoco, then 37, in a jealous rage when Buttafuoco opened the door of her Long Island home.

Fisher, who was 16 at the time of the shooting, said she had been involved in a relationship with the victim's husband, Joey Buttafuoco. He spent six months in jail for statutory rape as a result of the affair.

The Buttafuocos moved from Long Island to Los Angeles where Joey is a cable TV talk show host.

Fisher was dubbed the "Long Island Lolita" by the New York City tabloids, a reference to the Vladimir Nabokov novel about a middle-aged man's obsession with a 12-year-old girl. The case attracted national attention and was the subject of several made-for-television movies.

The three-member state parole board, which refused to parole Fisher in 1997, voted 2-to-1 to release Fisher, according to a spokesperson for the state Division of Parole.

Fisher went before the panel Tuesday at the Albion Correctional Facility in western New York where she's been serving out her sentence.

A Mother's Day gift

In a statement, Fisher's mother, Rose Fisher, said she had "prayed and waited for this moment to arrive. Knowing my daughter is coming home is the best Mother's Day gift I could wish for.

"I am looking forward to holding her in my arms, telling her I love her, and getting started on the rest of our lives together," Mrs. Fisher added.

Fisher's lawyer, Bruce Barket, said his client will live with her mother in New York state and look for a job in the fashion industry.

Fisher apologizes

At a court appearance in April, Fisher apologized to Mary Jo Buttafuoco.

"What happened to you -- it wasn't your husband's fault ... It wasn't my father's fault. It was my fault and I'm sorry," Fisher said.

Buttafuoco, who attended the hearing, told the judge she forgave Fisher.

Afterward, state Supreme Court Judge Ira Wexner threw out Fisher's 1992 guilty plea and sentenced her to a shorter prison term, clearing the way for her release, with parole board approval. Fisher had argued she was denied effective legal counsel when she initially pleaded guilty.



RELATED STORIES:

RELATED SITES:
The Amy Fisher Organization
Free Amy Fisher
Amy's Page
Note: Pages will open in a new browser window
External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.

 LATEST HEADLINES:
SEARCH CNN.com
Enter keyword(s)   go    help

Back to the top   © 2001 Cable News Network. All Rights Reserved.
Terms under which this service is provided to you.
Read our privacy guidelines.