Karen Huger said watching her arrest footage changed everything.

Ahead of the Season 10 finale of “The Real Housewives of Potomac,” the Grande Dame sat down for a candid conversation with Andy Cohen about the DUI conviction and jail sentence that followed her 2017 crash. 

In the interview, Huger admitted she was in denial for a long time and that addiction played a central role. “I didn’t even watch that film. I didn’t allow Ray to watch that film… I couldn’t relate to what my lawyers were telling me,” she told Cohen. When she finally watched the footage (alongside her therapist, who also urged her to view it), everything changed.  “I was blown away. I understood the sentence,” she said. 

Huger described struggling with both prescription drugs and alcohol, and said those substances clouded her judgment when legal advice (including taking a plea deal) was on the table. Her lawyer told her that the footage would “nail her,” and she still refused to take that legal advice nor watch the footage. “I was afraid of it,” she said.

“It was preventable, but let’s not underestimate the power of drugs and alcohol,” she said, conceding the extent of her mistakes. Her candor has prompted mixed reactions online. Some viewers praised her honesty and the show for depicting how “functional” addicts can look, while others criticized her for not taking earlier legal advice. 

Huger’s sit-down with Cohen has shifted the narrative from reality-TV scandal to a public reckoning about addiction, accountability, and privilege. Huger confronted the consequences that followed: In 2024, she was convicted of DUI, DWI, negligent driving, and additional traffic-related charges. In 2025, she was sentenced to two years in prison with one year suspended, and ultimately served six months before being released in September.

“Drinking and driving is wrong,” she said, adding that she will “never drink and drive again.” Huger also sat down with Sherri Shepherd and shared her truth about addiction. “You could say I was a functional addict at that time,” she said. “I knew when to have the pills with the alcohol and my cocktail. It was never in front of the cameras.”

Huger shared what her experience was like in county jail. “I was on a metal bed facing a cold cement wall for six months,” she said, letting it be known that she was not in a federal facility. She said the experience humbled her, forced her to confront her addiction, and allowed her to get closer to God. “I’m the same Karen Huger, just clean.”

Huger said she continued treatment while incarcerated and even led Narcotics Anonymous sessions. “Only a person who has experienced what I experienced can teach it,” she said, explaining that she hoped to help younger women avoid returning to jail. She is now focused on her peace and sobriety.