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RHOP’s Monique Samuels Charged With Assault After Incident With Candiace Dillard

Monique Samuels
Monique SamuelsTommy Garcia/Bravo

Real Housewives of Potomac’s Monique Samuels has been charged with second-degree assault after allegedly fighting with costar Candiace Dillard.

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According to a filing with the District Court of Montgomery County obtained by Us Weekly, a summons was issued on Thursday, November 7, for Samuels, 36. The papers indicate that the incident occurred on October 16 and a trial date has been set for December 23.

The pair were at dinner with their fellow Housewives, when they got into an argument and Samuels allegedly grabbed Dillard, 32, by the hair and pulled her down. Cameras were shooting footage for the upcoming season 5 of the Bravo show as the altercation took place and it took several people to get Samuels off the former Miss United States as police were called.

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“At this time, we do not want to say too much and just allow the criminal process to play out,” Dillard’s personal attorney, James J. Walker Jr., told Us in a statement. “We only ask everyone to pray for our client Candiace and her family. The physical assault, humiliation and emotional distress have all been very painful and difficult for Candiace as it would be for anyone attacked so viciously.”

Real-Housewives-of-Potomac
Robyn Dixon, Monique Samuels, Karen Huger, Gizelle Bryant, Ashley Boalch Darby, and Candiace Dillard Tommy Garcia/Bravo

“We also pray that Monique will get some help,” he continued. “We have spoken to the network and the network executives have assured us they made it very clear to Monique that this cannot happen again and they have assured us there will be additional security for our client during taping!”

“We also note that the summons to court charge of second-degree assault is just one step below first-degree assault and must be taken very seriously and we will weigh every legal remedy available to our client,” he concluded. “This behavior has no place in our society. And, we urge the representatives and friends of Monique to also refrain from continuing to defame our client with the onslaught of attacks the past couple of weeks!”

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Samuels’ attorney, A. Scott Bolden, told Us in a statement that Dillard’s account is “completely one-sided, inaccurate and unwarranted.”

“Ms. Dillard has a public reputation for aggressive, belligerent and threatening behavior that has played out repeatedly on the Housewives of Potomac for millions of viewers to see for themselves,” he said. “To be sure, my client did nothing but defend herself in the face of more very aggressive behavior by Ms. Dillard. If this event occurred during taping of the show, I am confident that the video will bear all of this out.”

“My client has every right to file for a counter criminal summons, as well, and will consider doing so, while fully defending herself in this action that has been filed with the Court.  Either way, I am confident that she will prevail on this matter,” he concluded. “Going forward, we hope that Ms. Dillard seeks the help she needs to avoid creating these kinds of unsafe and unfortunate circumstances in and outside of the workplace.”

The pair’s close friendship hit a rough patch during season 4, when Samuels called out Dillard for criticizing Ashley Darby for drinking while trying to get pregnant. Their relationship worsened when Samuels showed Darby text messages between herself and Dillard.

During the RHOP reunion in September, the pair admitted that they haven’t completely made up and Samuels claimed that they don’t communicate at all unless she is the one to reach out. They subsequently shared an emotional hug during the third part of the reunion but Samuels later tweeted that while it was a “beautiful moment,” it was “too bad it didn’t last long.”

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