Shannon Beador admitted she was “shocked” to see her bloodied face in a selfie from the night of her DUI arrest as she had no recollection of taking the photo.
The 60-year-old reality star spoke out about the graphic image after a trailer for the new season of The Real Housewives of Orange County showed her sharing the selfie with a co-star.
“That was really traumatic for me,” she said. People on Friday. ‘As you can see, I was hurt pretty badly and when I looked at him, I almost felt like I was looking at someone other than me.’
“I didn’t want to see myself like that and I didn’t want anyone else to see me like that either,” she continued. “I honestly thought I would never show it to anyone.”
Shannon acknowledged that posting the photo with her RHOC castmate meant it would likely go viral, but she was willing to take that risk.
Shannon Beador admitted she was “shocked” to see her bloodied face in a selfie from the night of her DUI arrest, as she didn’t remember taking the photo; (seen November 2023)
The 60-year-old reality star spoke out about the graphic image after a trailer for the new season of The Real Housewives of Orange County showed her sharing the selfie with a co-star.
“It was a big step for me to take that step,” she explained to the outlet. “When someone Googles my name, probably for the rest of my life, that’s what they’re going to see: my face, covered in blood, from the night that easily marked the lowest point of my entire life. But I wanted to be able to talk about everything that happened.”
In September 2023, Shannen was arrested in Newport Beach for crashing her car into a planter attached to a house, with a recorded blood alcohol level of 0.24, three times the legal limit.
Reflecting on the accident, he expresses gratitude that no one else was hurt, but has mixed feelings about his own well-being.
“I deserved to be hurt. I made a very stupid decision,” he said. “I could have killed someone.”
Beador was sentenced to 40 hours of community service and ordered to complete a nine-month alcohol program after the incident, in which she crashed into a home in Orange County.
The reality TV star received 36 months of informal probation, in addition to fines and fees. He will also have to complete 40 hours of community service and a nine-month alcohol program.
In an emotional new promo, Beador spoke to co-star Heather Dubrow, 55, about the lead-up to the incident, claiming that her ex-boyfriend John Janssen, whose house she had been at moments earlier, had called her a “drunk idiot.”
Beador said, “I got in the car and lost control,” before showing Dubrow a photo of her bloodied and bruised face from the crash. In the harrowing image, blood could be seen running down Beador’s face and neck.
“It was very traumatic for me,” she told People on Friday. “As you can see, I was pretty hurt and when I looked at him, I almost felt like I was looking at someone who wasn’t me.”
“Oh, I deserved to be hurt. I made a very stupid decision,” he said. “I could have killed someone.”
Dubrow said: “Oh, Shannon! Oh my God!”
Beador also talks about her current alcohol consumption, telling Emily Simpson that she is a “two drinks max person right now” and says she doesn’t drink “that often.”
However, when Tamra Judge asks Dubrow if he thinks Beador has “something of a drinking problem,” Dubrow says, “Yeah, I do.”
The stars are seen at a group dinner when Beador reveals that he thinks about his DUI every morning, and the judge replies, “Is that after I have a drink?”
Beador responds: “I don’t want people to say I’m a drunk who needs help anymore, because I’m not. I had a really bad night. I want to leave right now, because I’m ruining my makeup, so I have to go.”
Beador has described his DUI as a “terrible mistake” when referring to his arrest at BravoCon 2023, held at Caesars Forum in November.
“It’s been a tough six weeks, but I will tell you that I made a terrible, terrible mistake and I’m incredibly grateful that it didn’t hurt anyone,” Beador told the audience, according to Variety.
Shannon also said she completed “28 days of behavioral wellness counseling” with an alcohol specialist, adding that she has been able to “focus on elements of my life that are unhealthy and toxic. I’m moving in a good, positive direction.”
Beador is pictured with Janssen in 2019
The stars are seen at a group dinner when Beador reveals that he thinks about his DUI every morning, and the judge replies, “Is that after I have a drink?”
Beador also talks about her current alcohol consumption, telling Emily Simpson that she is a “two drinks max person right now” and says she doesn’t drink “that often.”
However, when Tamra Judge asks Dubrow if he thinks Beador has “something of a drinking problem,” Dubrow says, “Yeah, I do.”
In November 2023, the Bravo star did not appear in court herself and instead had her attorney appear on her behalf to enter a no contest plea to one count of DUI and one count of driving with a blood alcohol content of 0.08 percent or more.
The judge dismissed the single charge of hit-and-run with property damage.
A source close to Shannon said: “You can tell she’s relieved and grateful not to have to go to jail. This experience has taught her a lot and shown her the path to a better life. She’s sober and doing very well.”
Legal documents originally obtained by TMZ revealed that Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer tried to convince the judge to hand down a 30-day jail sentence.
Beador was arrested in September after crashing her car into a Newport Beach home.
CCTV footage shows Beador speeding through a residential area before crashing his car into the side of a house.
In legal documents, prosecutor Spitzer wrote that Beador had a blood alcohol content of 0.24 percent before the crash, three times the legal limit.
Beador emerged from the accident with a fractured left wrist and cuts and bruises to his left eye.
Beador responds: “I don’t want people to say I’m a drunk who needs help anymore, because I’m not. I had a really bad night. I want to leave right now, because I’m ruining my makeup, so I have to go.”
She has since paid for the property damage caused to the house she crashed into.
Following her arrest in September, Beador’s lawyer Michael Fell told DailyMail.com: “Shannon is deeply remorseful and apologetic. We will await official information on this case as it becomes available, and Shannon is prepared to accept full responsibility for her actions.”
Following the sentencing, Fell said: ‘Shannon pleaded guilty this morning to driving under the influence of alcohol and driving while her blood alcohol level was .08 or higher. The Orange County District Attorney’s Office argued that Shannon should be sentenced to prison and convicted of driving under the influence of alcohol and hit-and-run.
‘But after hearing legal arguments from both sides, the judge denied the prosecutor’s request and dismissed the hit-and-run case. In handing down this ruling, the judge acknowledged that Shannon had made full restitution to the homeowner in this matter, who did not wish to be prosecuted, and admitted to his misconduct at an early stage of the process.
‘As we initially reported she would, Shannon took full responsibility for her actions and agreed to the judge’s sentence of 40 hours of community service, 9 months of alcohol classes and the standard three years of unsupervised/informal probation.’
Beador herself said: “I am grateful that no one else was hurt other than me in this incident. I have learned a lot from my terrible mistake that night and realise that driving any distance while intoxicated is too far.”
Following the accident, Beador told her fans and followers that she is “focused on getting healthy, getting back to myself and walking Archie (her dog).”
It’s been a tough year for Beador, whose boyfriend John Janssen surprised her by splitting in November 2022 after nearly four years of dating.
Beador received a sentence of three years probation plus fines, community service and mandatory completion of an alcohol abuse program; seen in 2020
Staple: Beador has been a staple of the Orange County Housewives chapter since 2014; (l-r) Emily Simpson, Shannon and Tamra
John broke up with Shannon shortly after wrapping filming for Season 17 of RHOC, but she didn’t go public with their split until January.
Shannon made her relationship with John Instagram official in July 2019 after ending her tumultuous marriage to David Beador.
The reality star has a daughter, Sophie, 21, and twin daughters, Stella and Adeline, 19, with her ex-husband David.
Shannon faced further legal troubles after her ex John sued her for $75,000 over money he allegedly loaned her to pay for cosmetic surgery, which he claims she never repaid.
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