Real Housewives of Potomac star Karen Huger is set to spend one year behind bars as a result of her March DUI arrest. On Wednesday, a Montgomery County judge reportedly sentenced the 61-year-old to two years in prison with one year suspended, according to Fox 5 News. Prosecutors initially asked the judge for two years in prison with six months suspended, pointing to Huger’s three previous DUIs between 2006 and 2011. Following her prison time, Huger will not be able to operate a vehicle for another year. Per the New York Times, she was also fined $2,900, will receive five years of supervised probation, and will be forced to install a breathalyzer device in her car.
Referred to affectionately as the “Grand Dame” by Bravo fans, Huger appeared in court dressed in all black with her husband, Ray, at her side. As she was taken into custody, Huger reportedly shouted to her partner of 28 years, “You will be all right” and “God’s got you.”
The sentencing comes two months after Huger was found guilty of driving under the influence, negligently driving a vehicle in a careless and imprudent manner, and failure to control speed. The charges stemmed from an incident in March, when Huger was spotted driving her Maserati in “an aggressive manner” and later crashed into a pole in Potomac, according to the Montgomery County Police Department. In bodycam footage shown to the jury — which was later made public — an officer suggested Huger was “hammered,” to which the RHOP castmember responded, “Bullshit.”
Per E! Online, Huger checked into a 28-day treatment facility last month to “get to the bottom” of “taking antidepressants and drinking,” and is also reportedly active in Alcoholics Anonymous. Her rehab stint meant she was not present for the taping of the Bravo series’ season-nine reunion, though she did appear via two videos — one filmed the day after her verdict and the other after she decided to go to rehab. “No, I’m not an alcoholic, let’s be clear,” she said in the former. “Do as I say, not as I do.”
“This is very frightening, but I accept full responsibility for everything that went on with my car accident,” Huger went on. “I don’t care about me right now. I care about my children, I care about my family. They are so hurt.”