Real Housewives of Potomac stars Monique Samuels and Candiace Dillard received news that their assault complaints against each other will not move forward, Us Weekly can confirm.
According to Public Affairs Director Ramón V. Korionoff, the State’s Attorney’s Office for Montgomery County, Maryland, dismissed the charges. The decision followed interviews with Samuels, Dillard and witnesses as well as a review of footage provided by Bravo.
If the case had continued, Samuels, 36, and Dillard, 33, would have faced jail time. The women are still allowed to file a civil lawsuit against each other, despite their criminal complaints’ dismissal.
Samuels seemingly reacted to the news via her Instagram Story on Friday, December 27. “Just in time for the new year,” she wrote, adding praise-hands and heart emojis.
Her attorney, A. Scott Bolden, told Us in a statement on Friday: “Consistent with [Dillard’s] prior bad acts, offensive words and conduct, and her reputation for physical threats and verbal outbursts on the show, through third party interviews and the review of other evidence, the government concluded not to move forward against my client, Mrs. Samuels. And while the government decided not to pursue my client’s defensive claim against Candiace, we are very satisfied that justice was done. It is our sincerest hope that both parties can move forward without any further judicial actions or involvement and that this dispute can be resolved through mediation or a thoughtful conversation between the parties, without threats, goading or bad behavior that Candiace is so well known for.”
Bolden vowed to “work diligently to create a better work environment for all RHOP cast members, that may only be had with more mature and better behavior from Candiace. We certainly hope she gets the help she needs so that the parties can avoid any further altercations between the two of them.”
Meanwhile, Dillard’s lawyer, James L. Walker, Jr., said in a statement that the Bravo star is “very pleased” by the outcome. “She has been sadly attacked, physically and personally, by Mrs. Monique Samuels and her legal team! Even today as she is vindicated and there is no proof whatsoever that she committed a crime against her castmate, they are still attacking her,” he continued. “We would hope that Mrs. Samuels is getting help and treatment, as the evidence we saw clearly showed her as the aggressor and bragging about her assault on our client! We are prayerful that all parties can move on now and that Mrs. Samuels and her representatives will cease and desist with the verbal attacks and grandstanding against our client as this decision today releases Mrs. Samuels from criminal prosecution, but a civil court would still most likely find her actions to be legally actionable and considered assault!”
Us confirmed in November that Samuels was charged with second-degree assault following an October altercation with Dillard. The incident took place at a dinner with their fellow Housewives, with the “Not for Lazy Moms” podcast host allegedly grabbing the former Miss United States by the hair and pulling her down. Several people allegedly stepped in to pull Samuels off of Dillard and the police were called. The argument was filmed for season 5 of the Bravo series.
Samuels filed a counter claim against Dillard in November.
Earlier this month, she made her intentions toward Dillard clear after a fan told her via Instagram that they were “rooting” for the costars’ friendship. “I was too babe!” she replied. “But as the saying goes, when people show you who they are…believe them.”
Bolden told Us in a statement in November that his client “had no choice but to fully defend herself” after she was “assaulted by someone known for her aggressive, threatening and belligerent conduct.” He added that Samuels wanted “nothing more than to find peace with this situation but unfortunately the ability to do so through mediation has been denied.”
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Walker claimed in a statement to Us that Samuels was “caught on video threatening and attacking our client! We pray she is presently getting some type of treatment for anger management! The video is very clear and my client and I have confirmed with the network that Mrs. Samuels was clearly the aggressor!”
The reality stars were friends until season 4 when Samuels slammed Dillard for her criticism of costar Ashley Darby. They admitted during the reunion in September that their feud was not completely over, though they hugged. Samuels later tweeted that the “beautiful moment … didn’t last long.”
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