Buckingham socialite-turned-felon Claire Risoldi is headed back to jail.
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| Claire Risoldi |
A senior Chester County judge Friday sentenced the 71-year-old Risoldi to 11 1/2 to 23 months in Bucks County jail for filing $13 million in false insurance claims following a 2013 fire at the family’s former Buckingham estate known as Clairemont.
Judge Thomas Gavin also ordered Risoldi to repay insurer AIG the $10.428 million it paid out in claims related to the fire and $10,000 in fines.
Risoldi must report to the Doylestown correctional center on or before May 24 to begin serving her sentence.
In issuing his decision, Gavin, who was assigned the case after the Bucks County judiciary recused itself, noted that Risoldi was a person accustomed to the limelight, but turned it into a spotlight when she filed false insurance claims including $10 million for jewelry she reported stolen and falsely accused firefighters of stealing.
“Her fall from grace has been spectacular,” Gavin said.
When determining the sentence, Gavin said he took into consideration many factors, including that the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office allowed Risoldi’s son, Carl, 46, of Buckingham, who was accused of similar crimes, to plead guilty to lesser charges, serve no jail time, and keep many assets that were initially seized for restitution.
Gavin also emphasized that he did not want his sentence to make it appear that crime pays. Risoldi should serve some jail time, the judge said, but not the three-to-six years that prosecutors requested.
While Risoldi previously was convicted of fraud in 1990, Gavin said he did not consider her a recidivist offender. He also acknowledged the good she has done in the community, which is something that eight character witnesses testified to early in the proceedings.
Gavin also pointed out the presentencing report said Risoldi was a low risk to the community.
“I don’t see any insurance company volunteering to insure any interest she has,” he added.
The $10.428 million restitution order, the amount the Attorney General’s Office office sought, was based on the amount that AIG paid the Risoldi family, including $7 million in legitimate claims. Gavin agreed with prosecutors’ contention that Risoldi’s fraudulent actions voided the homeowner’s policy.
The judge ordered that $1.23 million, which includes nearly $500,000 in a bank account and the proceeds of the recent sale of the Risoldi’s Buckingham estate, Clairemont, immediately be applied toward the restitution. Risoldi was allowed to keep $53,000 and jewelry seized in 2015, Gavin said.
Gavin was unable to include in the restitution order proceeds from a future sale of a Danielle Drive property where Risoldi now lives, because it is technically owned by a family friend who acted as a straw purchaser. AIG will have to seek a civil order to have the property put into a trust, Gavin said.
After the hearing, Senior Deputy Pennsylvania Attorney General Linda Montag was pleased that Gavin mention the volunteer firefighters when delivering the sentence. Gavin addressed the half dozen firefighters who attended the sentencing, telling them they should feel vindicated.
“The OAG is thrilled with the fact the judge put on the record the firemen should hold their heads high, and the verdict reflected the community’s feelings about the firemen,” Montag said.
She added the AG’s office is satisfied Gavin ordered the full restitution amount requested and his sentencing Risoldi to jail time, calling it a deterrence of insurance fraud.
“Her crime clearly needed to be punished,” she said.
At least 20 of Risoldi’s friends and family members, many who had known her for decades, came to support her Friday. Eight spoke as character witnesses, describing Risoldi as a kind and generous person.
Edmondo Crimini testified that Risoldi mentored his two children over the 35 years that he has known her. They met at the New Jersey antique shop he owned that Risoldi once frequented, and bonded over a passion of antiques. He called her generous with her time and money.
He recalled how after he mentioned to Risoldi his volunteering with a local food bank, she returned to his store the next day with donations.
“I believe it would serve our society if you have the compassion to do the right thing,” Crimini told Gavin.
Ray Brown, a former deputy sheriff who knew Risoldi’s late second husband, Tom French, recalled how after his son was diagnosed with cancer, he went to Risoldi to ask for advice about throwing a fundraiser because his son couldn’t work during treatment. Risoldi organized and paid for the fundraiser herself, he said.
Linda Mattei testified she met Risoldi through business acquaintances, but saw her willingness to help others, even if it was a recommendation for a good doctor or a bouquet of flowers.
“I really don’t believe she has a vicious bone in her body,” Mattei said.
In her first public statement since her conviction, an emotional Risoldi told the court her recent 30-day incarceration in county jail on a 2016 contempt of court finding related to witness intimidation was “really, really rough” but she added she was not “looking for a pity party.”
She complained that the steel beds aggravated her herniated discs.
“It was pure hell,” she said.
Risoldi also thanked the judge, a U.S. Marine, for his service to the country and for his handling of her case over the last six years. Gavin was assigned the case after the entire Bucks County judiciary recused itself, citing Risoldi’s involvement with county politics and the Republican Party.
“I love you as a judge. I love you as a man. I appreciate everything you do,” she said, her deep, throaty voice cracking.
Risoldi’s children, Carl and Carla, also attended the sentencing.
Afterward, Carl said that his mom is eccentric, but she has done a lot for a lot of people.
“She is not a bad person,” he said.
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