Teresa Giudice & Husband Joe Start Court Proceedings - RHONJ Couple Hopes for House Arrest and Probation

All rise! Court is now in session.

Teresa and Joe Giudice have officially begun the pre-sentencing process in their court proceedings. While, the official sentence wont be handed down until July 8, the couple is meeting with the probation department to see if, and how much time, they will serve should they be sentenced to prison.

RadarOnline reports that "Joe and Teresa will be meeting with officials from the probation department and a report will be prepared for the judge to review at the July 8 sentencing hearing. The probation report will give the judge guidance as to what prison time if any Joe or Teresa will be sentenced to."

In the case, Joe is completely prepared to take the fault for his crimes, saying that he will testify that Teresa had no clue about his illegal actions.

"The couple will meet with officials separately. Joe is prepared to tell the probation department that he was the sole perpetrator in the crimes, and that Teresa had no knowledge. In doing this, Joe is hoping that the judge will not send Teresa to prison, and instead either give her probation or house arrest."

The couple face pretty hefty jail sentences, 27 months for Teresa and 46 months for Joe, after they both pleaded guilty to nine counts of bank, bankruptcy, mail, and wire fraud.

The insider also reports that the couple is meeting with a psychiatrist to see how they will do, should they be spending time behind bars.

"A meeting with a psychiatrist is also on the books to determine their mental health status, an how they would do if placed in prison. This is always done in these cases, and the Giudice's aren't receiving any special treatment."

Joe also faces deportation if the charges stick, since he is not a US citizen.

The site reports that "Joe is going to deal with whatever his punishment is, and if that includes being deported, he will face it. Of course, Joe would fight any attempt to be deported, but he knows his chances of being successful are slim."

Teresa is trying to stay out of the limelight to avoid negativity overshadowing her court proceedings, something that has been angering her producers at Bravo. The housewife recently was a no show at the NBCUniversal Upfronts because she didn't want to talk about her legal situation.

The source is reporting that the reason for that is "Teresa is terrified of making a wrong move between now and her sentencing. She's praying that she gets only house arrest or even probation. So she's staying out of the limelight and avoiding any situation where she will have to talk about the case."

More details on the sentencing will be revealed as the sentencing date draws closer.