Heather Dubrow leaked a text message Sutton Stracke sent her about Katie Ginella on Thursday night’s episode of The Real Housewives of Orange County reunion.
As Katie, 40, was blasted for allegedly “using” the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star, lying about owning a home, and making false claims against a man who was ultimately thrown in jail, the season 18 newbie was forced to explain why she lost custody of her kids as Tamra Judge, 57, and Shannon Beador, 60, argued about their falling out.
“There’s just a lot of hanky stories,” Heather, 55, noted on the November 7 episode of RHOC. “Sutton texted me last week and said to me, ‘She used me. She came to my house in Augusta and said she was gonna bring all these high-level golfers. No one showed up. She didn’t pay for the photographer. She just used me to promote her business.'”
Although Katie attempted to defend herself, saying, “I offered to pay for all of it, even the catering,” Heather insisted that’s “what Sutton said” as her text was shared on the episode.
Katie then mentioned that her son Gavin, 18, had been living in San Diego with her niece because he wanted to finish school there during filming, and she noted that he’s now living with their family “full-time in Orange County.”
Right away, Gina Kirschenheiter, 40, called her out.
“When I first met you, you reached out to me saying you needed my help as a real estate agent and you lied to me about owning your home in San Diego,” she stated.
“No. I did not lie to you about owning our home,” Katie fired back. “We did a lease to own with them. They wanted two years of rental income so that’s the situation … I didn’t move out of Orange County.”
After Emily Simpson, 48, pointed out that Katie had made an Instagram Reel in which she attempted to deny having left town, which Emily had accused her of on Jeff Lewis Live, Katie admitted to returning to San Diego for two months because her father-in-law was dying.
“I was actually right. You did move. You don’t live in the same house. And you did go to San Diego for a while,” Emily replied.
“I did move. You are totally right about that,” Katie agreed.
Meanwhile, Gina noted that Katie’s stories led her to not trust her.
“I just think there’s a lot of inconsistencies and things that don’t add up with some of the stuff that you say and do and that makes me feel, like, uncomfortable around you. And I don’t trust you,” she shared.
Heather was more blunt.
“This is your thing. Falsely accusing people is kind of your thing,” she stated. Emily then suggested Katie had sent someone to prison on false claims.
“He didn’t go to prison. Can I tell the story?” Katie asked. “The kids and I were driving in Marietta, Georgia, on a four-lane road, like nine, 10 years ago. A man was swerving into our lane yelling, ‘F*ck you, b*tch,’ at me.”
According to Katie, she pulled over and called the police. Then, when she tried to leave the scene, she claimed the man started filming inside of her car.
“My children are screaming, crying. My kids remember that day. It was terrifying,” she alleged.
Heather then shared, “That’s not the story the police tell. The police tell the story that you followed the guy home.”
“They tell a one-sided story,” Katie explained. “I would never follow anyone home.”
“So the police are lying?” Heather wondered. “She was driving her car and she was texting with children in the car, and this guy saw her, and he was triggered because a family member had been killed by a driving, texting person, and he told her to stop and that she was outraged and followed him home. She pulled behind him, in his driveway, came out, she was yelling at him. He filmed her because he thought she was getting crazy.”
Heather went on to say that after the police realized that Katie was the aggressor, the man was released.
“I couldn’t even tell my side. I didn’t even go to court,” Katie revealed, insisting that she was only found guilty because she missed a court date she didn’t know she had.
Emily then wanted to know why her co-star lost both physical and legal custody of her children.
“I was living in, I can’t say the name, in a facility in Atlanta. My parents who lived 20 minutes from me wouldn’t help me because they wouldn’t agree that I was divorcing my ex-husband. So he was immediately awarded the kids because I could not provide a place for them to live,” Katie explained.
Still, Emily said that wouldn’t likely result in a loss of legal custody unless she’d been deemed unfit or handed over that responsibility to her ex.
“I don’t know. At the time, I thought, ‘You know what? This is okay.’ I was trying to get my life together to figure out how I could get them back,” Katie told her as she began to cry. “It was 18 months … That was horrible, a horrible time.”
Elsewhere, Shannon looked back on her 30 days of treatment post-DUI as Tamra accused her of continuing to drink while attending.
“You called me drunk several times after that … One time you called me drunk, and you went off like a crazy woman and then called me 10 minutes later and had the same conversation with me,” Tamra stated.
“I went to a place where they did random drug and alcohol testing. I didn’t drink during the program,” Shannon replied.
But Tamra insisted, “You did.”
Although Tamra wasn’t backing down in her claims about Shannon’s post-DUI drinking, she admitted she was sorry for coming at her so hard during season 18.
“I was struggling with the fact that I was with you talking with you after the DUI. I knew that you were still drinking. And then you get on the show, I feel like you were in the same spot that you were after your DUI. I didn’t think you got the help that you needed,” she explained. “[And] that’s all I ever wanted for you.”
“I know I got the help that I needed cause I’m good,” Shannon responded.
Then, when Emily noted that Gina had forgiven Shannon for the harsh criticism she dealt her co-star after her DUI, Shannon turned to Tamra.
“I accept your apology. I appreciate your apology. I just don’t want to be your friend anymore,” she declared.
The Real Housewives of Orange County season 18 reunion continues with part two next Thursday, November 14, at 9/8c on Bravo.
