A Lithuanian court sentenced French rocker Bertrand Cantat to eight years in jail on Monday for beating his actress girlfriend Marie Trintignant to death in a hotel room row.
Trintignant, a member of one of France's most famous acting families, died last August of head injuries sustained during the fight in the Lithuanian capital Vilnius where she was shooting a film. She was aged 41 and mother of four children.
Convicted of homicide, Cantat, the lead singer of one of France's most popular rock bands Noir Desir (Black Desire), faced up to 15 years in prison.
His lawyers have 20 days to appeal, as does the public prosecutor, and the Frenchman could also ask to serve his prison term in France once the final sentence is determined.
Trintignant, a classic beauty who had graced French movie screens since childhood, died after five days in a coma as a result of brain damage.
Cantat, 39, told the court that all he did was to slap his lover during a heated quarrel in their Vilnius hotel room, causing her to fall and hit her head on a radiator.
The singer spent two weeks in a Vilnius public hospital after the row with his lover to be treated for alcohol poisoning and a suspected overdose of pills or drugs.
The death of Trintignant, daughter of French film star Jean-Louis Trintignant, shocked France. Her funeral was attended by actress Catherine Deneuve, former Socialist prime minister Lionel Jospin and British actress and singer Jane Birkin.
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