Former Vice President Joe Biden’s niece avoided going to prison on Thursday after she was convicted on a felony charge for a credit card scam in which she racked up over $100,000 in bills.
Caroline Biden, 31, was offered a “sweetheart plea deal” after her felony conviction was thrown out last month and she was allowed to re-plead guilty to a significantly lesser charge of petit larceny, which usually involves stolen property valued at under $50. The New York Post reports:
The pampered Georgetown grad completed 10 days of community service at a children’s hospital and paid full restitution of $110,810.04.
“I love the children, and I’m still working with the volunteer service program now and that’s been very fulfilling,” Biden said in Manhattan Supreme Court. “I can assure you that I have made amends, full restitution, completed community service and that nothing like this will ever happen again.”
An unidentified person let Biden make a one-time purchase on their credit card in 2015 of $672 at Bigelow Apothecaries on Sixth Avenue. The New York Post adds:
But then she set up an unauthorized account in the card-owner’s name and went on a spending spree at the posh drugstore, where such common items as hairbrushes and skin creams can run into the hundreds of dollars.
“I not only acknowledge my conduct and take responsibility but deeply regret the harm caused,” Biden said Thursday.
Biden isn’t a stranger to run-ins with law enforcement, as she was charged in 2013 after she got into an altercation with her roommate and “took a swing at responding cops.”
“I shouldn’t be handcuffed!” Biden said. “You don’t know who you’re doing this to!”
The New York Post notes that the charges were dropped and sealed against her in that case.