‘Real Housewives’ star Luann enters guilty plea
“Real Housewives of New York City” star Luann de Lesseps has pleaded guilty to charges stemming from her alcohol-fueled confrontation with a Palm Beach police officer seven months ago.
But the 53-year-old Bravo network celebrity — who faces a one-year probation sentence — won’t be at the courthouse when the case goes before a judge today.
De Lesseps signed the terms of a plea deal on July 3 and the documents will be submitted for the court’s approval in her absence. She recently entered an alcohol abuse rehab facility, according to published reports.
DeLesseps pleaded guilty to three misdemeanors: battery, trespass, and disorderly intoxication, in exchange for a sentence of one year of probation to be served in New York. The charges will not appear on her record, as long as she successfully completes the terms of the agreement.
The battery charge replaced a third-degree felony charge of resisting an officer with violence, which is punishable by up to five years in prison.
Police arrested de Lesseps on Dec. 23 after she refused to leave a room that wasn’t hers at the Colony Hotel.
She slammed a bathroom door in Officer Steven O’Leary’s face. Then, after being placed in handcuffs and put in the back of a patrol car, she managed to slip out of the restraints and tried to get out of the car while kicking and cursing and making death threats, according to an arrest report.
Under the plea deal, de Lesseps has already written a
letter of apology to Officer O’Leary, according to defense attorney Douglas Duncan.
She also must perform 50 hours of community service for a non-profit organization, attend a “victim impact class” run by Mothers Against Drunk Drivers, and attend two meetings a week with Alcoholics Anonymous.
If she violates these conditions, she would face up to two years and 60 days in jail and up to $2,500 in fines.
Duncan and Assistant State Attorney Cynthia Green are expected to seek Palm Beach County Circuit Judge Glenn Kelley’s approval of the deal.
In a statement after the incident, de Lesseps blamed it on “buried emotions” that involved her first visit to Palm Beach since her 2016 marriage there that later ended in divorce, according to an article in The New York Daily News.
The newspaper also reported that de Lesseps issued an apology on Facebook and indicates plans to get alcohol treatment.
“I intend to turn this unfortunate incident into a positive life changing event,” she wrote. “Once again, I sincerely apologize for my actions. I have the greatest respect for police officers and the job they do.”