Runaway Bride Cops Plea

With her once-jilted fiancé at her side, runaway bride Jennifer Wilbanks pleaded no contest Thursday to a felony count of making a false statement.

Wilbanks, whose disappearance before her wedding in April created a nationwide sensation, was indicted last week on charges of making a false statement and making a false police report.

"I'm truly sorry for my actions and I just want to thank Gwinnett County and the city of Duluth," a crying Wilbanks told the judge.

The felony charge of making a false statement carried a maximum sentence of five years in prison. But the judge sentenced Wilbanks to two years of probation and 120 hours of community service. He also ordered her to continue mental health treatment and pay the sheriff's office $2,550.

Family members say she has been receiving psychiatric treatment at an unspecified facility.

On Tuesday, Wilbanks agreed to pay $13,250 to the city of Duluth, Ga., to help pay for the overtime costs the city incurred searching for her.

"This case is all about symbolism and about the law enforcement community using this high-profile story to remind citizens about how bad an idea it is to lie to the police about anything," says CBSNews.com Legal Analyst Andrew Cohen.

Wilbanks was wearing a black outfit and running shoes as she arrived at the Gwinnett County courthouse Thursday to accept the plea. Her fiancé John Mason, whom she was to have married April 30 in a lavish ceremony, was by her side.

Wilbanks, a nurse, disappeared from her Duluth home on April 26 and took a bus to Las Vegas and then Albuquerque, N.M.

She initially claimed she was abducted and sexually assaulted, but later recanted and said she fled because of unspecified personal issues days before the high-profile wedding.