She gambled, and lost.
A Queens lawyer who swindled clients to feed her gambling bug thought pleading guilty would get her less time in jail.
But the judge said no dice, and told her she could spend almost 10 years in prison.
Arelia Taveras, 46, was an up-and-coming lawyer fighting for victims seeking compensation from the 9/11 terrorist attacks. But her luck ran out when she stole more than $130,000 from the accounts of several real-estate and divorce clients to finance her out-of-control gambling habit.
“Why didn’t you go lower on the charges?” Taveras asked Queens Supreme Court Justice Joseph Grosso. “I’m not happy.”
“You’re not happy,” Grosso shot back. “I’m not here to make you happy.”
She pleaded guilty to four counts of third-degree grand larceny and one count of fourth-degree grand larceny.
Taveras was held without bail to await the April 27 sentencing.