More Words Versus Deeds,...

A liberated Lane aiming at CBS3

By Michael Klein

Inquirer Staff Writer

NEW YORK - Former CBS3 anchor Alycia Lane wants to work again in Philadelphia - but for another station.

"She thinks she could beat her old station" in the ratings, her attorney, Paul R. Rosen, said yesterday, after a New York City court hearing put her a step closer to closure. No local stations, though, seem to be in hiring mode.

Lane, 35, no longer faces the felony assault charge filed Dec. 16 after a middle-of-the-night encounter with a plainclothes police officer on a Manhattan street. CBS3 fired her from her $700,000-a-year job two weeks later.

Lane, who has steadfastly maintained her innocence, now faces less serious counts of harassment and obstruction of governmental administration. Both will be dropped in six months if she stays out of trouble, Manhattan Criminal Court Judge Dina Douglas said. Lane did not plead guilty, and her record will not carry a conviction.

Prosecutor Mike Greenman said the felony charge was dropped because the scratches the plainclothes officer sustained were not serious enough to support the charge.

Lane agreed to one day's community service, which she already has performed. She volunteers with Project HOME, the Philadelphia advocacy group for the homeless.

After Douglas approved the deal, Lane's boyfriend, Chris Booker - seated next to her in the harshly lit courtroom - clasped her hand.

Lane's criminal attorney, David Smith, said he agreed to the deal to speed the judicial process and "avoid the public spectacle of further proceedings." He said he expected that Lane would have been cleared at trial; yesterday's agreement offered the same outcome.

"This matter has ended completely," Smith said.

Lane had ducked photographers by entering the courthouse through a side door with Booker; her parents, Marlin and Petrita Lane; her agent, Greg Willinger; and two longtime friends, former TV reporter Trish Bergin and publicist Matthew Hiltzik.

But after the hearing, she faced the throng, appearing in front of cameras for the first time in 10 weeks.

"I'm so glad it is over," said Lane, demure in a black Moschino suit and matching Louboutin stilettos. "I'm looking forward to moving on with my life."


The TrekMedic adds:

I really could care less about how she used her celebrity to beat a rap over beating an officer of the law. I just needed an excuse to publish this pic: