Conservative media personality, Karyn Turk, has been formally sentenced to a month behind bars in a federal prison followed by five months of house arrest after being found guilty of committing Social Security fraud.
Turk, who is a former Mrs. Florida, was convicted of fraud after taking money from her mother’s Social Security checks instead of sending the checks to her mother’s nursing home. Turk’s mother, Ilse Schafer, died in 2020.
The Palm Beach Post reported that U.S. Magistrate Judge Bruce Reinhart said at the sentencing, “The message I’m sending is: You can’t steal from the government and not go to jail… Choices in life have consequences, I’m sorry to tell you.” Reinhart said, “If you steal from the government, you’re not going to have a reputation as an honest person.”
Reinhart, in a nice touch, also saw fit to hit Turk with 100 hours of community service which she is to carry out at a nursing home.
The Palm Beach Post also reported that David Tarras, Turk’s attorney, said the sentence would damage his client’s career.
Turk has been an outspoken supporter of President Trump and has a well-established career as a conservative media personality She also has a large social media presence and hosts the interview show “Behind the Headlines” and works as a commentator for RT International which is a news outlet funded by the Russian government.
Firmly placed in Trump’s camp, Turk has been a longtime defender for Trump pal Roger Stone, who was found guilty of lying to Congress and tampering with evidence back in November. Stone is looking at a possibility of up to 50 years in prison, with his sentencing coming in February. According to the Sun Sentinel, in September Turk hosted a fundraiser to support Stone.
Turk spoke to The Washington Post and said she thought the judge was using her as an example and treating her unfairly because of who she was and that she plans to appeal the decision.
Turk said,
“I would say that I was unfairly treated in large part … because I was a public figure.” Karyn Turk
Turk is also facing multiple separate legal battles. She is being sued by the nursing home where her mother had resided since 2015, the Finnish American Rest Home, also by her mother’s appointed guardian, Amy Nicol, and by Nicol’s lawyers. The nursing home says they are owed more then $219,000.
Turk is suing the nursing home, however, for allegedly failing to provide adequate care to her mother. She also claims that all the lawsuits being taken against are are just “completely financially motivated.”
And yet. After all this, AFTER her sentencing, Turk took to Instagram to post a photo of herself which showed her standing in front of Trump’s Mar-a-Lago. Turk, quoting a Trump phrase, said to West Palm Beach ABC affiliate WPBF in an interview, “In a lot of ways, this seems like a witch hunt against me, and I think a lot of it is because of my political affiliation.”
