JUDGE REOPENS CASE FOR WOMAN IN BOY'S DEATH; NEW EVIDENCE COULD BOLSTER DEFENSE.

Byline: Peter Hartlaub Daily News Staff Writer

In a case that changed California child welfare laws, a judge agreed Friday that a woman convicted of beating a 2-year-old boy to death in North Hollywood deserves another chance to defend herself in court.

After spending 20 months in jail for the murder of Lance Helms in 1995, Eve Wingfield was told she would be freed on her personal recognizance while the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office decides whether to pursue charges.

Her attorney, Michael Goodman, argued that new evidence proves Wingfield couldn't have killed the son of her former boyfriend, David Helms. Following a short hearing, Van Nuys Superior Court Judge Michael Hoff ruled that Wingfield can take back her guilty plea to felony child endangerment and enter a not guilty plea to murder and child abuse.

It remained unclear whether Wingfield would have to return to court.

A prosecutor said authorities still are investigating what role, if any, Wingfield and David Helms had in the boy's death. Deputy District Attorney Steven Slavitt said his office is ``not convinced'' that Wingfield is free from responsibility.

``Mrs. Wingfield did accept previously at least partial responsibility for the death of Lance Helms,'' he said.

Born with a drug addiction, Lance was taken by the county Department of Children's Services and placed in the care of an aunt. Despite eight court hearings over his father's competency as a parent, the boy repeatedly returned to the household where he eventually died.

Lance Helms died in his father's home, where he lived with Wingfield. His death was caused by several powerful blows to the abdomen.

Police had discounted Wingfield's alibi that she had been at a pawn shop at the time of the boy's death because a coroner's report showed Lance could have been alive for up to 60 minutes after the beating.

Those facts have changed, her attorney claims.

Goodman says coroner's office pathologist Dr. James Ribe has altered his testimony because he found that Lance Helms had the flu, which meant the boy had died almost instantly - while Wingfield was miles away.

``The most important evidence that we have is that Lance Helms' condition at the time that he was beaten, as a result of flu and very serious vomiting he had at the time, had caused . . . dehydration,'' Goodman said.

The boy's death April 6, 1995, didn't go unnoticed. It led to changes at the county and state levels, giving a child's safety more priority in custody cases.

Faced with a murder charge, Wingfield accepted a plea agreement and admitted to felony child endangerment in the boy's death. She was sentenced to 10 years in prison Jan. 11, 1996.

On Friday, Hoff allowed for Wingfield's release with a restriction - that she stay away from minors unless supervision is present.

Goodman said the ruling means Wingfield could end up having to defend herself against charges of child abuse and murder, which carry a stiffer sentence than her conviction on the single charge of child abuse.

Goodman said his client was willing to take that ``gamble,'' because the coroner's office report has bolstered her case.

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Photo: (1--3) Eve Wingfield, above, reacts as the judge allows her case to be reopened. At left, Gail Helms holds up a picture of her 2-year-old grandson Lance Helms, who was beaten to death in April 1995. The case led to changes at the county and state levels, giving a child's safety more priority in custody cases.

David R. Crane/Daily News