“Real Housewives Star Released Six Months Early in DUI Case”

Real Housewives of Potomac star Karen Huger has been released from prison earlier than expected.

The reality star, 62, walked free on September 2, six months ahead of her scheduled release date, a spokesperson for the Montgomery County Detention Center confirmed to Page Six.

The Daily Mail has reached out to Huger’s representatives, but they have not yet responded.

Back in February, a Maryland judge sentenced the TV personality to one year in prison after she was found guilty on nearly all counts connected to her March 2024 DUI arrest and car crash in Bethesda, Maryland.

Following her release, she will remain on probation for five years. In addition, she has been prohibited from driving for another 12 months.

The Bravo star has a history of alcohol-related offenses, having been arrested three previous times for driving under the influence.

Prosecutors had asked for the Bravo star to serve six months in jail, but the judge gave her the highest-possible sentence. Huger had three previous alcohol-related offenses. 

Montgomery County Circuit Court Judge Terrence McGann in the case told Huger during her sentencing that she was ‘filled to the gills with alcohol,’ as reported by Fox5. 

Huger’s lawyers asked the judge to go soft on her, arguing she was grieving her parents’ death and struggling with anti-depressants. 

‘Ms. Huger’s mother died on Thanksgiving morning in 2017 of kidney failure and sepsis. Her father died seven months later on June 28, 2018 from the complications of Alzheimer’s and ‘of a broken heart,’ Huger’s lawyers said in a motion.

‘Those two losses, in quick succession, were for Ms. Huger, personally devastating and, in her opinion, may have been the straws that broke her back, arguably leading to several errors in judgment that led to her arrest in this case.’

Huger was found guilty of driving at a speed too high for the conditions before she ultimately struck a median and two signs.

‘What are we waiting for the fifth before we sentence you to jail time?’ Judge McGann asked during her sentencing.  

‘Can we believe that she’s only driven while intoxicated four times in the last 17 years or is it more likely that she’s been very lucky and her inebriation has gone undetected?’ he added. 

After she was found guilty, bodycam footage from the night of her accident was released, in which she appeared incoherent, referring to herself as ‘Thomas Jefferson’s concubine’ and telling officers that she was ‘extremely intelligent.’

Huger, who has said the accident happened due to her being in a ‘super emotional state,’ was later charged with a DUI and DWI.

It was not Karen’s first such incident. In 2016, she told BOSSIP that she had been arrested 10 years prior for drunk driving.

‘I [got] pulled over,’ she told the outlet at the time. ‘Technically I wasn’t driving, I was pulled over into a parked area where you should not park.

‘I turned off the car and I called my husband. However, the teddy bear cops found me first, and I collected my DUI.’

She pled guilty to ‘Driving While Impaired By Alcohol’ and was put on probation at the time.

Huger missed the Real Housewives of Potomac reunion but recorded a message before she went into treatment to address her taking of antidepressants and drinking.

‘No, I’m not an alcoholic, let’s be clear,’ she said. 

‘This is very frightening but I accept full responsibility for everything that went on with my car accident. I don’t care about me right now. I care about my children, I care about my family. They are so hurt.’

Huger had claimed she was innocent for the entirety if the latest season of the hit Bravo show. 

After she was found guilty last year, her attorney put out a statement which said Huger was ‘disappointed in the jury’s verdict.’

‘Although we are disappointed in the jury’s verdict, we of course respect their decision and appreciate their time hearing our case,’ her lawyer, A. Scott Bolden, told People.

Bolden, who is a partner at Reed Smith law firm, added, ‘We continue to reserve Mrs. Huger’s right to an appeal and intend to fully pursue justice on her behalf.

‘We appreciate your support and prayers for Mrs. Huger and her family at this time.’