Sizemore's prison sentence halved

Sizemore has been imprisoned without bail since 5 June

Actor Tom Sizemore has had his 16-month prison sentence for violating probation in a drugs case reduced by half.

The 45-year-old star of Saving Private Ryan will now serve nine months, after receiving credit for time already spent in jail and two spells in rehab.

But with good behaviour credits, he is likely to spend about four and a half months behind bars, said Los Angeles deputy district attorney Sean Carney.

Earlier this week Sizemore pleaded not to be sent to prison.

But Superior Court judge Cynthia Rayvis suggested that the Hollywood star has shown he "cannot successfully sustain or complete" probation.

Suspended sentence

The actor has been on probation since October 2004, when he was given a 16-month suspended jail sentence for possessing methamphetamine.

In February 2006, he admitted breaching that probation and was ordered to have weekly drug tests and attend a treatment clinic.

Last month, police arrested Sizemore in Bakersfield, north of Los Angeles, on suspicion of possession of methamphetamine, being under the influence of a controlled substance and possession of narcotic paraphernalia.

He has been imprisoned without bail since 5 June, and faces a maximum of six years in prison if convicted of all the charges. He has pleaded not guilty.

Sizemore has been in and out of California courts for years on drugs charges.

In 2005, he admitted using a prosthetic penis to fake a urine test.