The Real Housewives of New Jersey star Teresa Giudice and her husband Joe Giudice pleaded not guilty in federal court last week on a 39-count indictment that included conspiracy to commit fraud, according The New Jersey Star-Ledger.
The preliminary trial date will take place for the couple on October 8, but due to the complexity of the case, the date may be pushed back.
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According to the Ledger, Teresa and Joe sat silently in court as the 39-count indictment was listed by Assistant US Attorney Jonathan Romankow. Joe is separately being charged with failing to file tax returns from 2004 to 2008 on about $1 million of income. He is also facing charges in a completely unrelated case for fraudulently obtaining a driver’s license.
“They vehemently deny their guilt,” Joe and Teresa’s lawyer, Miles Feinstein, said when he addressed the court. “There’s an assumption of innocence and they vehemently assert their innocence.”
According to RadarOnline, the not guilty plea was only entered after a plea bargain was denied that would have kept her out of jail.
“Teresa and Joe’s defense team submitted a plea deal on Wednesday, but the US Attorney denied it,” an insider told Radar. “Teresa wanted a plea deal that keeps her out of jail so she offered to do anything else but jail time and have Joe serve all the time in jail. The prosecutor dismissed the deal outright.”
The source also said that the only kind of plea deal that will be accepted is one in which Teresa does some time.
“They believe that the evidence will show that Teresa can’t play dumb. She was in cahoots with Joe and was just as much a part of orchestrating the scam as he was.”
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The New York Daily News is reporting that prosecutors have asked Bravo to provide them with footage from The Real Housewives of New Jersey that never aired, thinking that some of it may provide valuable evidence.
“For every hour that airs, there are more than 20 hours of unedited footage,” a source said. “They shoot for three months and end up using only the footage that fits into the story line they want to focus on.”
Right now, Teresa is trying to stay positive as she continues to try and keep the routine of her daily life.
“I’m not going to stop working. Now I’m in it and I’m going to work until who knows when,” Teresa told Entertainment Tonight. “The good thing about working is it’s a good example to show to my daughters. Mommy’s a businesswoman, and hopefully they’ll follow in my footsteps.”
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(Image and video courtesy of Bravo)
Contributing Writer, BuddyTV
