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Jen Shah Throws Herself on the Mercy of the Court
As everyone knows by now, Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star, Jen Shah, was arrested in March 2021 for her involvement in a nationwide telemarketing scheme. At her arraignment the following month, she plead not guilty. The trial was set to start last March, but was postponed until July. But in the meantime, there have been a few interesting developments; the main one being that her alleged parter in crime, Stuart Smith, changed his plea to guilty.
Shah appeared in a New York court earlier today to take part in a change of plea hearing. She has now switched her original plea of not guilty to guilty, taking responsibility for the fraud and money laundering charges. Per a Twitter thread from Inner City Press' Matthew Russell Lee, the 48-year-old reality star told Judge Sidney H. Stein she had committed "Wire fraud, offering services with little to no value." She continued, "We used interstate telephones and emails. I knew many of the purchasers were over the age of 55. I am so sorry.".
Judge Stein then asked the reasoning for these things being purchased, Shah explained she had offered "misrepresentations, regarding the value of the product or service, of which it had little to none." "Did you know it was wrong and illegal?" asked Judge Stein, to which Shah responded, "Yes, your Honor.".
Shah was charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with telemarketing and although she will not stand trial, she still faces a maximum penalty of up to 30 years in prison. Shah was arrested in March 2021 alongside her assistant, Stuart Smith, for allegedly targeting individuals in a nationwide scheme. At the time, both Shah and Smith, 43, were charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with telemarketing and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
It should be noted that Smith was later denied a reduced sentence after previously receiving 72 months in prison and five years of supervised release, per Fox News. Shah, on the other hand, had maintained her innocence until Monday's court hearing. Her legal team even attempted to get the charges dismissed in August 2021, but a judge denied the request. She will be officially sentenced on November 28, 2022, and even though the money laundering charge was dropped, she could still be looking at up to 14 years in prison, but it sure beats 30.
I think she was wise to throw herself herself on the mercy of the court, because apparenty, the evidence was just so overwhelming, and why spent another million dollars on a doomed defense? I predict she will be sentenced to five years, and probably actually do at least half of that, and then serve the remaining sentence with a blinged out ankle bracelet. I can't imagine she will remain under the employ of NBC/Universal/Bravo, but lucky for her, she's got at least another full season (maybe two) behind her, because we know how long these things can drag out.
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