Back in January, Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino was ordered to jail for eight months on felony tax evasion charges. He couldn’t be bothered to pay the taxes that he owed on $8.9 million in earnings from 2010 to 2012. Because of course. Before heading behind bars, he began selling t-shirts featuring the Italian flag and the phrase “Free Sitch.” On Thursday, he completed his sentence and has been released:
Mike ‘The Situation’ Sorrentino… was released from prison on Thursday, after serving an 8-month sentence in the Federal Correctional Institution in Otisville, New York for pleading guilty to tax evasion.
“We are elated to finally close this chapter of our life,” Sorrentino and his wife, Lauren, shared in a joint statement to ET. “Thank you to our family, friends and fans for the continuous love and support during this time, it brought us so much peace and comfort.”
“We look forward to continuing our life as husband and wife and working on baby situations!” the statement continued. “We truly believe that the comeback is ALWAYS greater than the setback and we can’t wait to show the world ours.”
Sorrentino also took to Twitter, writing, “Turn up we free !!! #freesitch.”
Sorrentino’s release comes just a few weeks after his Jersey Shore Family Vacation co-stars Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi, Jenni “JWoww” Farley, Deena Cortese and Angelina Pivarnick flocked to Washington, D.C. in “Free Sitch” T-shirts in hopes of speaking with officials to get him out early.
Of course he tried to make money off his prison sentence, and of course his costars thought they’d be able to get him an early release. I hope The Sitch wises up and pays his taxes from here on out. But that will depend largely on how seriously he takes this experience. Vinny said of his friend’s time in prison, “He’s doing better than me. He literally, like, eats well, he goes to the gym twice a day. He gets a haircut twice a week.” Vinny also said that The Sitch often looked “refreshed.” He was at the same prison where Donald Trump’s former lawyer, Michael Cohen, is serving his three-year sentence. I also have to note that white men are often great at avoiding being charged with crimes, and, for example, black men get longer sentences for the same federal crime as white men. So, I’m actually surprised that The Situation served his entire sentence. Who knows what kind of impression his time behind bars left on him and whether it means that he’ll clean up his act.
Turn up we free !!! #freesitch pic.twitter.com/sbXUADQFci
— Mike The Situation ☝🏻 (@ItsTheSituation) September 12, 2019
I’m not vibing with the “living my best life’ catchphrase anymore.
Agreed.
Hopefully he learned the eternal lesson – the IRS WILL get their money. I find it interesting his brother is apparently still in jail for aiding?
From my understanding, Mike’s brother was his financial manager and was the one who didn’t pay the taxes on the income. Mike was under the impression that his brother was doing what he was supposed to, but instead his brother stole money from him and didn’t pay taxes. It also didn’t help that at the time Mike was an active drug user. Mike is in recovery and has been sober for awhile. I’m rooting for him.
I will admit I watched the original Jersey Shore and the latest version (feel free to judge me, it’s well deserved). During the original show Mike was a terrible human being, as it turns out he was a drug addict during this time which seems to explain his behavior bc in the latest version he is a nice, sweet, caring individual. I’m glad he is sober now and working on bettering himself. I’m rooting for him too.
@Jadedone
I’ve also been a Jersey Shore fan since season 1. I HATED Mike in the original show because he constantly was trying to be the villain. Now he’s obviously matured and seems like a genuinely good person.
I agree. He seems to have grown up, admits his faults and seems to be a good person. Anytime an article is written on him, it is with no awareness of how he seems to have changed–he does motivational speaking, doesn’t drink and seems responsible now. Good for him.
Exactly. He has done everything you’re supposed to do when you mess up. He owned up to all of his mistakes, faced the consequences, humbled himself, and made changes to his behavior.
Now I get kind of annoyed when people shit on Mike.
The reason why you’re confused is because Sorrentino was sentenced under federal law, not state law. 8 months meant serving 8 months. Tax evasion is a federal crime, not state. It’s more than just not paying your taxes, it’s filing fraudulent tax returns. Tax avoidance is not criminal, tax evasion is. Nicholas Cage didn’t go to federal prison for owing the IRS. Neither did Willie Nelson. Both owed & paid. I think Sorrentino filed fraudulent returns.
Thanks for posting that. I did not know the difference
So…now what? Is he actually going to get a job or is it back to the same ol’ same ol’ — trying to milk his reality tv fame for as long as possible by shilling crap like the rest of ’em? Except for Paulie, who does seem to have a legit DJ career.
The fact that this d1ck swab apparently earned $8.9 million makes me physically ill. And we wonder why the rest of the world hates us.
Wait what?! Please tell me he had to give most of it back for tax evasion. It seems like stars on reality shows keep heading to jail! They keep thinking they can fool the IRS.
The only show I saw him on was Worst Cooks In America. They definitely put him in his place.