White River Junction —  Louis A. Fucci Jr., the one-time owner of Benning Street Bar and Grill who pleaded guilty in 2011 to hiring a hitman to kill his former business partner and his former girlfriend, is seeking to have his sentence reduced.

A hearing on his motion is scheduled for Tuesday, at 2 p.m., in Windsor Superior Court.

Fucci, 59,who is serving his time in Michigan, is expected to attend.

The request has raised concerns for both victims, who said in separate telephone interviews last week that they still live in fear. “I’ll look over my shoulder for the rest of my life,” said Bruce Weissman, Fucci’s former business partner.

In a 14-page motion filed last year, Fucci said that, at the time he set up the plot, he was suffering from an untreated mental illness that had been worsened by a “perfect storm” of personal difficulties, including coping with a divorce, the end of his relationship with his girlfriend and the demise of his business.

Those factors exacerbated his depression and anxiety and affected his character, according to the motion, which was filed by his attorney, Dan Sedon. 

His mental illness and other mitigating factors, such as his lack of a prior criminal record, should have been factored in at his sentencing hearing and given weight in determining his minimum sentence, Sedon said on Thursday.

“Mental illness is a factor to be considered … in punishment,” Sedon said. “This shouldn’t be confused with trying to escape responsibility. He takes responsibility for his actions.”

In March 2013, Fucci pleaded guilty to three felony charges, including one count of obstructing justice and two counts of inciting another to commit a felony. Judge Robert Gerety imposed a 10- to 15-year sentence, which Fucci is now asking the court to reconsider. He will be eligible for parole in 2021. 

At the time of sentencing, Fucci told Gerety he deserved to be punished for his summer 2011 behavior.

Fucci, a former disk jockey known as “Rockin Lou,” was arrested in September 2011 on charges that he paid a hitman to kill his former girlfriend, Joy Barney, and Weissman.

However, the supposed hitman, Sean Meiklejohn, notified police of the plot and wore a wire to gather evidence against Fucci. Court documents indicated Fucci was motivated, in part, by financial difficulties relating to the sudden closing of the bar and grill in December 2010.

Then-Windsor County State’s Attorney Michael Kainen, who was named a judge in January, filed a response to Fucci’s request in May 2015 asking the court to not reconsider his sentence. Deputy Windsor County State’s Attorney Heidi Remick has since taken over the case.

“The state takes the position that the original sentence was appropriate,” Kainen wrote. “The state has been in touch with one of the original victims, who remains fearful of Mr. Fucci.”

Weissman, who no longer lives in New England, said he still lives in fear, a state of mind that will be worsened when Fucci is released. 

He said Fucci should have received a longer sentence than the one imposed three years ago, let alone have his sentence reduced.

Barney said she, too, is still fearful.

She has taken several actions to try to distance herself from Fucci, including moving, though she still lives in the Upper Valley. She said her family members have planned their lives around the 10- to 15-year sentence. If Fucci’s sentence is reduced, “we will have to uplift and reroute,” Barney said. “It affects us deeply.”

Both Barney and Weissman said they have young children.

Barney said the court has allowed her little opportunity to weigh in on Fucci’s motion to reconsider. “Where is our time to be able to express our emotions?” she asked.

Fucci in his motion argued that Gerety should have given his mental health at the time of the incident, his lack of a criminal record, his age, the collapse of his business, his divorce, subsequent loss of his companion and his decision to accept responsibility for his actions more value when determining his sentence length.

He said the court lacked expert testimony on the relationship between his mental illness and the crimes, as well as testimony on the uselessness of punishing someone’s behavior that is “caused in significant part by mental illness and the preferability of treatment when such conditions are present.”

Jordan Cuddemi can be reached at jcuddemi@vnews.com or 603-727-3248.

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