The most compelling true crime docuseries on television right now airs Wednesdays at 8pm EST on Bravo. Yes, I said Bravo. Over the past two months, The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills has morphed from a plandid look at very rich women bickering about petty things — previous tiffs have included being late to a meetup and the adoption and return of a dog named Lucy Lucy Applejuicey — into a show centered more and more on one woman’s too-desperate performance to prove her innocence.
Each week, the show has been exploring the intricacies of fallen legal titan Tom Girardi and the shameful crimes he committed for decades with no consequences until now. Luckily for us (and unluckily for Girardi’s legal team), Bravo has an inside look at the intriguing crime story because 80-something Tom has been married to Real Housewife Erika Girardi (AKA Erika Jayne, her popstar stage name) for the past 20 years. The embezzlement accusations against Erika Jayne have made The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills the realest it’s ever been. Throughout Erika’s time on the show, we’ve watched her spend millions on cars, jewelry and designer clothes, not to mention the $40,000 monthly glam she regularly bragged about. Now that we know that the money she was spending was in fact stolen from Tom’s victims (which include Indonesian victims and widows), the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills has transitioned from a showcase of wealth to a showcase of crime.
Erika’s not the only Real Housewife to have her time in the spotlight on Bravo go from 15 minutes of fame to 15 minutes of felon. Here’s your beginner’s guide to some of the other infamous crimes committed by Bravolebrities. If you thought Real Housewives was all table flipping and turtle time-ing, think again.
Jen Shah
Real Housewife of Salt Lake City Jen Shah, along with her assistant Stuart, have been charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with telemarketing and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
“Jennifer Shah, who portrays herself as a wealthy and successful businessperson on ‘reality’ television, and Stuart Smith, who is portrayed as Shah’s ‘first assistant,’ allegedly generated and sold ‘lead lists’ of innocent individuals for other members of their scheme to repeatedly scam,” Manhattan U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said in a press release. “In actual reality and as alleged, the so-called business opportunities pushed on the victims by Shah, Smith, and their co-conspirators were just fraudulent schemes, motivated by greed, to steal victims’ money. Now, these defendants face time in prison for their alleged crimes.”
Intrigued? You’re in luck, because Jen’s true crime journey kicks off during the upcoming season of Real Housewives of Salt Lake City (premiering Sunday, September 12th). The FBI literally show up to arrest Jen during filming, and Bravo cameras capture her getting a tip-off and fleeing the scene. I have chills just thinking about it.
Luann de Lesseps
Some would say that Walter White had the most compelling character arc on television, but those people have clearly never heard of Luann. Throughout her 10+ years as a mainstay on Real Housewives of New York, Lu’s journey has taken her from a Countess to a felon to a cabaret star. After a disastrous marriage to middle-aged frat boy Tom, Lu was arrested in December 2017 in Palm Beach and charged with disorderly intoxication, battery on an officer/firefighter/EMT, resisting arrest with violence and threatening a public servant, according to the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office. Luckily, our beloved Countess rebounded and became a cabaret star, blessing audiences nationwide with her tone-deaf renditions of classics such as “Money Can’t Buy You Class” and “Feelin’ Jovani.”
Teresa Guidice
The Real Housewives of New Jersey OG is not only a reality TV pioneer, but also a trailblazer in terms of wives’ crimes on Bravo. By far the most serious Bravolebrity-related arrests played out when Teresa and her husband Joe were arrested on July 29, 2013 after several seasons depicting their legal troubles. They were charged in a 39-count indictment that included conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, bank fraud, making false statements on loan applications and bankruptcy fraud. On Oct. 2, 2014, in addition to probation and fines, Teresa was sentenced to 15 months in prison for fraud, while Joe was sentenced to 41 months and was released to Italy, where he continues to fight his deportation order.
If only Erika Girardi had learned from Teresa not to sign on the dotted line anytime your husband tells you to. Who says Real Housewives can’t teach audiences crucial life lessons? School may have taught me long division, but Real Housewives taught me how to avoid getting suckered into my spouse’s illegal activities.
Michael Darby (AKA Demon Darby)
Michael may not be a wife, but he’s nonetheless continually a driving force behind drama on Real Housewives of Potomac. Potomac star Ashley Darby’s husband Michael was charged with felony assault and misdemeanor improper sexual conduct. The reality star husband allegedly grabbed and groped Orville Palmer, a cameraman for the show, on Sept. 1, 2018 while filming an episode. Palmer said he instructed Darby to stop, and then told his supervisor.
The charges were dropped due to insufficient evidence; however, Michael is guilty of many things, most prominently being a massive creep.
