The sentence is reduced after the court decided that it was wrong to assess the two hired assassination attempts on the zoo competitor and animal rights activist Carol Baskin separately, reports AFP.
According to the new view, the court has decided that the sentence should no longer be between 22 and 27 years - but lower, between 17.5 and 22 years.
In addition, Joe Exotic's lawyer, John M Phillips, opens up for new information that may further reduce the sentence:
- People should know that what was shown on TV was not the whole truth.
It was not even the tip of the iceberg.
It was the snowflakes on top of the iceberg, he says in a comment according to AFP.
Joe Exotic, who has always denied any wrongdoing, was also convicted of killing five tigers, selling tiger cubs and forging documents.
Plans for a TV series are closed
At the same time, Amazon has recently announced that they are closing down plans for the fictional miniseries about the eccentric zoo owner who would have Nicholas Cage in the title role.
- I read two fantastic scripts.
But in the end, I think Amazon thought that the material had become too obsolete because it took so long to get it together, the actor tells Variety.