Man, I blew it. I killed her... On October 30, 1982, 22-year-old "Poltergeist" actress Dominique Dunne was rehearsing a scene with her friend and co-star David Packer for the miniseries "V"

Man, I blew it. I killed her...

On October 30, 1982, 22-year-old "Poltergeist" actress Dominique Dunne was rehearsing a scene with her friend and co-star David Packer for the miniseries "V" when an uninvited guest appeared at the door of her Santa Monica home. 

It was John Thomas Sweeney, Dunne's abusive ex-boyfriend. Dunne decided to go outside to speak with him. Meanwhile, Packer stayed inside.

Within moments, Packer heard the disturbing sounds of a struggle, followed by a thud. He phoned a friend and told him that if he was found dead, Sweeney was his killer. Packer then stepped outside, where he found Sweeney kneeling over Dunne's body by the driveway. Sweeney admitted that he had strangled Dunne so violently that he couldn't revive her — and asked Packer to call the police. But by the time the authorities arrived, Dunne's brain activity had ceased. Though she survived for four more days in the hospital, her parents soon made the tragic decision to cease life support.

To the outrage of many, Sweeney would successfully argue at his trial that he had no recollection of killing Dunne and that he had tried to administer CPR. The charges were soon lowered from murder to manslaughter. In the end, Sweeney only received a six-year sentence — and he would only serve three and a half years