Charles Sykes/Bravo Tamra Judge appeared on "Watch What Happens Live."
“Real Housewives of Orange County” star Tamra Judge gave an update on her youngest child, Sophia Barney, 17, following a frightening experience on the April 17 episode of her podcast, “Two Ts In A Pod.” While recording the podcast episode, alongside her co-host “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” alum Teddi Mellencamp Arroyave, Judge shared that on April 13, “an intruder came onto [her daughter’s high school] campus” and “they put the school on lockdown.” According to People magazine, a representative for the Orange County Sheriff’s Department informed the publication an individual had trespassed on the grounds but “was detained quickly.” The publication also reported that “[n]obody was hurt and the man was arrested for trespassing.” Judge took to Instagram on April 13 to share that Sophia, who is fathered by her ex-husband Simon Barney, texted her about the situation while it was occurring, per People. The RHOC star also noted “he did have a weapon” that People reported was “a pocket knife.”
During the “Two Ts In A Pod” episode, Judge disclosed that her daughter, who “suffers from OCD [obsessive-compulsive disorder] and anxiety,” has found the lockdown, which “was over an hour,” upsetting. The Bravo personality shared that the teenager managed to remain calm during the incident because she was assisting her classmate who “was on the phone with her mother, crying … saying ‘I don’t want to die.’” Judge also shared that her daughter is “better” but will “have moments where she’ll have to process” what had occurred.
“Sophia wasn’t at school on Friday [April 14] because I was with her all night long. She wanted to sit downstairs, which is not normal for her — she always wants to be in her room. So we were downstairs, we watched a movie, we made s’mores, we just talked. And she said ‘mom I really thought I was going to die,’” shared Judge.
The RHOC star also disclosed that her daughter has since returned to school.
“She went today. And I asked her, I said ‘how are you feeling? Doing okay?’ And she said ‘Yeah, I’m okay.’ I think it’s reassuring to know that they guy didn’t have a gun,” explained the mother of four. “But I think the whole process of being in lockdown and being scared and not knowing what is going to happen for an hour has completely traumatized so many kids.”
Tamra Judge Revealed Her Children Wanted Her to Return to ‘Real Housewives of Orange County’
Judge returned to RHOC after a two-year absence for the Bravo franchise’s upcoming seventeenth season, which does not yet have a release date. While speaking to OK! Magazine in February 2023, the 55-year-old revealed that Sophia, along with her siblings Ryan Vieth, Spencer Barney, and Sidney Barney, had requested her to rejoin the show’s cast.
“I was a little bit depressed in the first year [of not being on the series] because I’ve been doing this for 12 years and my kids … are all grown up. My kids then said, ‘Please go back on the show. You know you need to go back.’ I didn’t realize how much I missed it,” said Judge.
Tamra Judge Shared Information About ‘Real Housewives of Orange County’ Season 17
Judge shared what fans can expect from her RHOC return in a December 2023 interview with Extra. She confided she “had a lot of built up anger” and hinted that she had explosive reactions while filming with her castmates. She also warned that viewers may “love-hate [her] this year.”
The reality television star also informed E! News in December 2022 that she believes RHOC 17 “is the best season [the show has] had in many, may years.”
“It’s a good cast now,” explained the Vena CBD co-owner.