By TOM HOWELL JR.

thowell@njherald.com

A Hampton man was sentenced Wednesday to four years in prison for snatching a purse from a 49-year-old woman at the Hampton Mini-Mall, dragging her to the ground until she let go.

Michael P. Bowden, 26, had pleaded guilty to theft from a person for the incident Oct. 14, 2008, in the parking lot outside the Marshall's clothing store.

Authorities said Bowden approached the woman beside her vehicle at 4:06 p.m., reached for her pocketbook and said, "Sorry, I need this," tugging her along until she relinquished the bag.

The victim's young daughter looked on as the incident occurred, First Assistant Prosecutor Gregory Mueller said.

"This was planned," Mueller said. "The defendant was basically hiding and waiting in that parking lot for someone he could rob."

Defense attorney Carmen Liuzza said Bowden had abused drugs and alcohol because of an extensive history of mental health problems.

Bowden was four days into a medication routine when the incident occurred. Had he received help sooner, "maybe this incident would have never happened," Liuzza said.

Mueller said Bowden was fortunate to negotiate a plea down from his original robbery charge, which called for serious prison time and a period of parole ineligibility.

Bowden received credit for 384 days served in jail since his arrest and likely will be eligible for parole immediately.

He apologized for his actions Wednesday in a lengthy statement he read aloud to the court.

"I took a risk that turned out to be my biggest regret," Bowden said, adding, "I never wanted to harm anyone or leave a lasting impact on anyone's life."

But Judge N. Peter Conforti said Bowden did exactly that.

Bowden can make good on his remorse, he noted, "but for the victims, the lasting memory will be imprinted indelibly on their minds."