'RHONJ's' Joe Giudice Takes Fraud Plea, May Face Deportation

By Brett Snider, Esq. on October 16, 2014 | Last updated on March 21, 2019

Joe Giudice, who you may know as Teresa Giudice's husband from "The Real Housewives of New Jersey," took a plea deal on Wednesday and may face deportation for yet another fraud case.

Joe would hate to one-up his wife in the criminal department, but it turns out he had a charge for driver's license fraud pending while the two were dealing with charges for mortgage fraud. TMZ reports that Joe was initially threatened with a 10-year prison sentence for the driver's license fraud, but he copped a plea to serve an 18-month sentence concurrently with his 41 months in prison on other charges.

He may not be receiving any additional prison time, but what could Joe's plea mean for his potential deportation?

Last Time, on the Real Court Lives of Joe and Teresa...

Since it seems like the TV pair's rap sheet is getting longer by the season, let's do a reality-show style wrap-up:

Somewhere around 2010, the Giudices weren't doing so hot financially and were auctioning their stuff in bankruptcy.
As it turns out, their problems were much worse than bankruptcy. Joe and Teresa had been involved in mortgage fraud -- or at least that's how a grand jury felt when it indicted them on 39 counts.
Flash forward to 2014. The reality show couple accepts a federal plea deal and is sentenced at the beginning of October. Joe was sentenced to 41 months in prison and Teresa to 15 months.
About a week later, Teresa and Joe appeared on Bravo's "Watch What Happens Live," where Teresa told Andy Cohen that she didn't understand she'd be going to prison as part of her plea deal.

And that's what you missed on the real court lives of Joe and Teresa.

Driver's License Fraud and Immigration Consequences

Being convicted for fraud is bad, but for Joe Giudice, being deported may be worse. Even though Joe may have a green card, the Italian citizen is eligible for deportation because he's been convicted of several felonies involving fraud -- driver's license fraud being the latest.

According to NJ Advance Media, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will wait until after Joe has served his 41-month sentence to make decisions on his deportation. And since he won't go to prison at least until Teresa gets out (sometime in 2015), Joe may not be leaving the country for at least four to five years.

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Related Resources:

Joe Giudice Accepts Plea Deal in Drivers License Fraud Case, Judge Calls Deportation ''Virtual Certainty'' (E! News)
Fake Lawyer for 'Real Housewives' Stars Arrested in N.J. (FindLaw's Celebrity Justice)
'Real Housewives of N.J.' Couple Plead Guilty to Fraud (FindLaw's Celebrity Justice)
How Does a Felony Affect Immigration Status? (FindLaw)