The Shady Side Of Mike 'The Situation' Sorrentino

Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino has found his way into the center of another legal predicament. The Jersey Shore alumnus and star of WE tv's Marriage Boot Camp: Reality Stars Family Edition was recently indicted on a whole new slew criminal charges following a lengthy federal investigation into him and his brother Marc for suspicion of tax evasion, falsifying records, and other violations. The patron saint of "Gym, Tan, Laundry," ever the self-promoter, retweeted news coverage of his developing criminal proceeding, just in case anybody missed it.

If this all sounds familiar, it's because Sorrentino has been in this particular legal quagmire before. If convicted, the charges could land each brother in jail for 10 years or more. In addition to millions of dollars of incorrectly reported income, prosecuting U.S. Attorney Paul Fishman said that "the brothers allegedly also claimed costly clothes and cars as business expenses and funneled company money into personal accounts. The law is absolutely clear: telling the truth to the IRS is not optional." Oops.

Whether he's vindicated of the new charges or not, the fact that he's still in the spotlight for criminal mischief is no surprise; the shady side of Mike Sorrentino has a long and vibrant history. Here's a look back.

The downside of being an over-the-top, sex-and-drugs reality star is that it's far too easy to get too enthusiastic about the drugs. And while MTV tried to keep it PG-13, illicit drugs were very much in Sitch's orbit once he hit the small screen; for example, during filming, the Situation's close buddy the Unit was reportedly arrested outside of the infamous Jersey Shore house for possession of ketamine.

Then, in March 2012, TMZ confirmed that Sorrentino had entered rehab for substance abuse, even though his rep said he had simply "spent the past several weeks at an undisclosed location for much needed rest and recuperation after his extensive production and appearance schedule." They later discovered that he had been seeking treatment at the Cirque Lodge in Utah, and confirmed he had been abusing prescription pills.

A source for Radar Online also shed light on the alleged, uh, situation, saying, "Mike was taking unbelievable amounts of Dilaudid along with Xanax and Ambien. Mike was taking about 20-30 pills a day which easily could have killed him. Mike is very lucky that he didn't overdose and die, because the amount of prescription drugs was that high and deadly."

Most of Sorrentino's legal woes (at least the ones that are likely to carry the stiffest potential penalties for him) come down to money, and his tendency not to cough it up to the people to whom he owes. Even the people on his side have been known to jump ship once their fair payments prove elusive.

His lawyer requested to withdraw himself from Sorrentino's tax evasion case in 2015 well before the new, additional charges were filed, petitioning to quit over lack of payment. "It would be a significant hardship for me and my firm to continue to represent Mr. Sorrentino without any reasonable expectation of payment," wrote the attorney, Richard Sapinski. He officially withdrew in August that year.

The previous year, Michael and his brother Marc were sued by the firm Wolfe Law Miami, for bounced checks and unpaid legal bills. Additionally, he's been sued by former managers for breach of contract, leading them to sue for damages over lost earnings they incurred from his sudden about-face.

Sorrentino reached his on-screen low point around season four of the Jersey Shore, the one where the gang went to Italy. Whatever he may have been going through at the time, the show could not conceal the fact that something was distinctly wrong with him. Gone was the happy-go-lucky house dad who sort-of charmed us in the early, magnificent days of season one; this Situation was a sullen, unpredictable husk.

Frequently disengaged and out of it, the Situation's erratic behavior wore heavily on the show's cast and crew. Tensions also came to a head with co-star Ronnie Ortiz-Magro, as seen in the episode in which Sorrentino threw a bed frame and banged his own head into a wall.

Would it surprise you to learn that the Situation is not particularly good at conflict resolution? His process appears to consist of three steps: 1) popping that shirt off, 2) screaming "Let's go", and 3) screaming more specifically, "Let's go right now."

This is, at least, the scene we imagine took place inside a Middletown, New Jersey tanning salon that Sorrentino owned one Tuesday afternoon, where he was arrested for simple assault during a fight against his brother and business partner, Frank Sorrentino. The battle left his eye blackened, and his rap sheet just a little bit longer. As the fight was essentially a brotherly business argument that got out of hand, the punishment for Mike's charge was reduced to a relatively small fee—but only after he completed a 12-week anger management course. "You won't see Mr. Sorrentino in this court again," promised his lawyer at the time, Edward Fradkin. Which, okay—maybe not that particular courtroom.

In addition to getting arrested on a charge of assaulting his brother Frank, Sorrentino has also had a very public, dramatic conflict with his father. His estranged dad, also named Frank, took the unusual move of setting up a truly bizarre website on which he called out the reality star for abandoning his family in pursuit of fame.

He made his case in a series of rather strange videos in which he threatened to torpedo the Situation's reputation, if such a thing is even possible. "I put my f****** balls on the line for you," his dad said in one callout, cryptically. "I think people should know what I know. Hardcore partying, drugs, sex, crime elements, you name it. It's in there." The over-the-top intensity of the videos is rather remarkable, with no holds barred, and all types of nasty secrets teased. "Based on what he did to me, my attitude is f*** the little f***, and I'm not holding anything back." The family drama escalated to the point that Sorrentino sued his dad for copyright infringement, resulting in an apology, a site takedown, and a small settlement. What exactly was Frank really talking about? The world may never know.

The brief, dramatic life of the Situation's Middletown, New Jersey-based Boca Tanning Club must have been such a colorful learning experience for the employees. He allegedly bounced checks to the staff, and the employees were heated enough over the slight that the police got involved. (Sorrentino claimed later that this entire episode was an innocent mistake.)

But that same salon soon closed after just shy of one year for not paying $32,000 in back rent to the property management. Initially, the landlord sued for the money, and it was agreed that the Situation would pay the money he owed back in installments. Perhaps unsurprisingly, he missed the first payment of $5,500, leading the landlord to evict him.

Okay, so there's nothing really wrong or at all illegal about this, but it's still funny to imagine the Situation selling the tires and rims of his Ferrari on eBay (and crowing about it to his Twitter followers) in the midst of all of the financial trouble he's brought down on himself. The parts sold for a winning bid of about $10,000, with TMZ noticing the listing under the category "every little bit counts."

Hey, there's nothing wrong with trying to make a little money on the side, especially when the government's breathing down your back for taxes you owe them, your employees are calling the cops for money you owe them, and your lawyers and business partners are taking you to court you for money you owe them. From all accounts, the sale went off without a hitch, but let's hope Mike properly reported the income, lest the Situation end up bogged down in a whole new legal, um, ordeal.