'Real Housewives of New Jersey' Stars Joe And Teresa Giudice Talk Impending Fraud Trial; Say They Wouldn't Leave Kids With Melissa Gorga

by UInterviewSeptember 30, 2013, 12:00 amNews >

Teresa and Joe Giudice, the Real Housewives of New Jersey stars, appeared on Andy Cohen’s Watch What Happens Live Sunday night for a special One-on-One interview.

The Giudice’s have both been indicted on charges of fraud and could face up to 50 years in prison each. Since news of their indictment first broke this summer, Teresa has been adamant that she is making her children her priority.

“Today is a most difficult day for our family. I support Joe and, as a wonderful husband and father, I know he wants only the best for our lovely daughters and me. I am committed to my family and intend to maintain our lives in the best way possible, which includes continuing my career,” Teresa tweeted July 29.

In her first televised interview since her indictment, Teresa confirmed that she still intended to keep working as a castmember on Real Housewives of New Jersey.

“I still want to keep working, and I just hope that the other women in the cast would have the same respect, because if this was happening to them, I would give them that respect,” Teresa told Andy.

When asked if she would ever consider leaving her four daughters in the care of brother, and fellow cast member, Joe Gorga and his wife Melissa, Teresa answered that she was trying to think positively about the case and hadn’t really considered who she would entrust with the care of her children should she and her husband both be put in jail. Her husband, however, made it clear that he would not trust Joe and Melissa with his children and mentioned that he would prefer for his children to stay with his side of the family.

“If God forbid… it wouldn’t be Melissa and Joe… I don’t think my kids would want to go with Melissa and Joe after all the things they say on television about their mom,” Joe said.

Joe is referring to the longstanding feud between Teresa and her sister-in-law. The relationship between Teresa and Melissa is volatile, as evidenced in the most recent season of RHNJ, which ended Sunday night. Teresa also has a strained relationship with her brother, and claims that he and his wife are always spreading lies about her.

“How long is [Joe] going to keep talking trash about his only sister? I wish he would stop, but it is taking a toll. You can only get hurt so much before you go numb. This week, when he was spewing garbage about me, I was numb. I don’t know what that means, but that’s how I feel now,” Teresa wrote in her blog reaction to the Sept. 22 episode.

Despite the drama airing on their reality television show and occurring in their lives off-camera, Teresa says she hopes something good will come from these difficult times.

“I can’t fall apart, Andy, I have my daughters. They mean the world to me… I’m asking, like, ‘why is this happening to me?’ So maybe something my daughters can learn from this is, you know ‘my mom was really strong through all this, she was there for us.’ And I hope that they always have that with them.”

Teresa admitted that, though she tries to be strong for her children, she does suffer from extreme anxiety.

“It’s devastating. I have anxiety and sleepless nights,” Teresa said.

For his part, Joe maintains his innocence, telling Andy that he never over-extended his family’s finances.

“We have never lived beyond our means. Whatever I could afford to buy I would buy. We work hard, so what, we are allowed to make money. It’s a part of, that’s what we do, I’m a business man and I make money,” Joe said.

Joe and Teresa, who both plead not guilty to the charges brought against them, will face trial starting on Oct. 8.

– Olivia Truffaut-Wong

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