'Real Housewives of Potomac' star Karen Huger sentenced to jail for DUI

USA Today

28-02-2025

'Real Housewives of Potomac' star Karen Huger sentenced to jail for DUI
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Karen Huger body cam video: "Real Housewives" star found guilty of DUI
"Real Housewives of Potomac" star Karen Huger was found guilty of DUI and four other charges after a car crash in Maryland.
Fox - 5 DC
"Real Housewives" star Karen Huger is headed to jail.
Huger, dubbed "The Grande Dame" on Bravo reality show "The Real Housewives of Potomac," was sentenced to two years in jail by Maryland Circuit Court Judge Terrence J. McGann with one year of the sentence suspended, meaning she is expected to serve one year in jail, Montgomery County State's Attorney's Office confirmed to USA TODAY Wednesday.
On Dec. 19, Huger, 61, was found guilty of DUI, negligent driving, failure to control speed to avoid a collision, and failure to notify of a change in address, but was acquitted of reckless driving, following a March car accident, the state's attorney's office previously confirmed.
In addition to her time in jail, Huger faces $2900 in fines, no driving at all for a year after release and five years of supervised probation upon release with an interlock device (a car breathalyzer), according to the Montgomery County State's Attorney's Office.
'Real Housewives' star Karen Huger found guilty of DUI, bodycam videos released
Huger was charged in March after crashing a vehicle while driving in Potomac, Maryland. The TV personality "crossed a median and struck street signs," a representative for the Montgomery County Police Department confirmed to USA TODAY at the time.
Huger failed to show for the three-part "RHOP" reunion, revealing in a previously taped message to her cast members on the Feb. 16 episode that she was checking herself into a rehab facility.
Karen Huger arrest video: 'RHOP' star said she was 'Thomas Jefferson's concubine' in post-accident footage
The "RHOP" reunion featured now-infamous body camera footage from the night of Huger's accident and subsequent arrest by police officers, which captured her saying, "Oh God. I'm lit."
In body-cam videos shown during the trial, Huger refused to take a sobriety test but acknowledged she had been drinking before the accident and should have "probably taken a cab."
The reality star repeatedly asked officers if they knew who she was and appeared to slur her words as she said she is "really rich" and "Thomas Jefferson's concubine." The footage also showed Huger telling an officer he would be "ashamed" when he Googles her.
Karen Huger became known as 'Grande Dame' on 'Real Housewives'
Huger has been a main cast member on the "Real Housewives of Potomac" since 2016. The show, one of two featuring all-Black casts, features wealthy and prominent Black women in the Washington D.C. metropolitan area (or DMV for D.C., Maryland, Virginia).
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Season 9 of "RHOP" wraps Sunday with its final episode of the three-part reunion. Huger currently stars on the Bravo show with fellow main cast members Ashley Darby, Gizelle Bryant, Wendy Osefo, Mia Thornton, Stacey Rusch, Keiarna Stewart and friends of the cast Jacqueline Blake and Jassi Rideaux.
Huger's cast members have criticized her conduct throughout the season.
Contributing: Brendan Morrow