A Lansdale woman, who ran unsuccessfully on the Republican ticket in 2022 for Pennsylvania lieutenant governor, was sentenced to one year probation for providing alcohol to and partying with 20 underage teenagers in her Bucks County basement last year “for the love of her daughter,” according to Jo Ciavaglia of Bucks County Courier Times.
Clarice Schillinger, 37, pleaded no contest to furnishing alcohol to minor on Wednesday in Bucks County Common Pleas court, avoiding one year in jail, before Common Pleas Judge Stephen Corr, per court records. The case made national headlines last year when Schillinger threw the party for her daughter’s 17th birthday.
According to Bucks County Courier Times, a no contest plea means Schillinger did not outright admit to the crime, but had enough evidence against her to be found guilty, per reports.
Corr said Schillinger is “no longer going to be the fun mom,” adding it was offensive that she portrayed herself in public as one character while being a different person behind closed doors.
Schillinger played beer pong and even did multiple shots of New Amsterdam vodka and Malibu Bay rum with teenagers, per reports.
“I hope you have learned your lesson from this,” Corr said in the article.
Charges of simple assault and harassment were dismissed, per the article. Per the report, Schillinger’s mom and then-boyfriend got into a fight with one teenager at the party.
Buckingham Township Police broke up an out-of-control underage drinking party at Schillinger’s Liz Circle home on Sept. 29, 2023.
According to court records, Schillinger pleaded guilty to public drunkenness in Montgomery County Common Pleas court following a citation from Towamencin Township Police in February.
As part of her punishment, Schillinger must stay away from four people who attended the party and she is banned from traveling except for work.
According to the article, Schillinger, a strong conservative proponent of the “parental rights” school movement that flourished during Covid, hired a PR firm to put out a statement after her prosecution:
In the blink of an eye, my life changed, along with the lives of my children. A series of false allegations drawn out in the media have cost me almost everything. No family should ever go through this. Today, almost a year later, my case has been resolved. Finally, we can breathe and focus on rebuilding our lives. With forgiveness in my heart and determination propelling me forward, I embrace the opportunity to rise from adversity and contribute positively to the world. Onward and upward, I march, steadfast in my commitment to serve those in need and to foster healing and hope in our community.
Read more on the case here.