'Real Housewives of New Jersey' Teresa Giudice's Husband Facing 10 Years, Pleads 'Not Guilty'
Joe Giudice has vowed to fight his indictment charges and yesterday rejected a plea offer which would have capped his potential prison sentence at five years.
On Monday Giuseppe "Joe" Giudice, who is renowned for his outspoken and candid person on hit reality TV show the "Real Housewives of New Jersey," pleaded not guilty to second-degree wrongful identity and fourth-degree impersonation, according to northjersey.com.
Giudice, 40, now faces up to 10 years behind bars if he is found guilty of fraudulently obtaining a driver's license in his brother's name.
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The father of four rejected a plea offer by The Passaic County Prosecutor's Office, and his attorney, Miles Feinstein, suggested that Giudice's role on the hit reality show has ultimately impacted his case.
"I believe that because of Joe's celebrity he is being treated differently. It's totally unfair," Feinstein told North Jersey News.
In December the Christian Post revealed that a grand jury had indicted Giudice, a Montville, N.J. resident, on two counts.
According to law enforcement, Giudice allegedly used his brother's marriage documents and birth certificate to obtain a license at the Paterson motor vehicle office in 2010.
"They didn't even catch me driving...They came to my house and said you're driving with your brother's license and then they got me with some kind of stupid charge," Giudice insisted on the reality show.
The incident is not the first legal problem faced by the Giudices.
The couple filed for bankruptcy in 2009 with relation to an $11 million debt, which they dealt with on the TV show.
Teresa, a 39-year-old mother of four, was slammed by critics for her lavish spending and expensive tastes which many suspect contributed to the large debt.
Season four of "Real Housewives of New Jersey" is expected to air later this year.
