U.S. Attorney Confirms He’ll Ask For A Tougher Prison Sentence For Lori Loughlin If Convicted In College Admissions Scandal

Oct 10, 2019 by apost team

The U.S. Attorney Andrew Lelling who is the main prosecutor in the College Admissions Scandal confirms he will ask for a harsher punishment for Lori Loughlin than Felicity Huffman.

“Full House” actress Lori Loughlin has pleaded not guilty to conspiracy charges in the college admissions scandal while “Desperate Housewives” actress Felicity Huffman took a plea deal along with several other parents in exchange for less jail time.

The attorney confirmed the higher sentence for Loughlin while speaking to WCVB Channel 5 Boston News. Court filings show Loughlin is pleading 'not guilty' to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Prosecutors claim Loughlin and her husband, Mossimo Giannulli paid half a million dollars to a fake charity to have their two daughters accepted into the University of Southern California. The daughters were positioned to look like crew recruits even though both of them have never rowed. 

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Lelling told the news outlet why they are treating Loughlin and Huffman’s cases so differently.

“One of the things we looked at was money involved. She [Felicity Huffman] spent about $15,000 to have her daughter get a fake SAT score. She took responsibility almost immediately. She was contrite, did not try to minimize her conduct. I think she handled it in a very classy way.”

Huffman was also charged with conspiracy to commit mail fraud. However, her 'guilty' plea was exchanged for low jail time and no further charges being brought against her. Huffman was only sentenced to 14 days in prison, fined $30,000, and asked to complete 250 hours of community service. 

However, on the other hand, Lelling explains how Loughlin’s case will be handled differently.

“If she [Lori Loughlin] is convicted, I don’t think I’m giving away any state secrets by saying we would probably ask for a higher sentence for her than we did for Felicity Huffman. The longer the case goes...If it is after trial, certainly, we would ask for something substantially higher. If she resolved it before trial, something lower than that.”

Loughlin is maintaining the narrative that she was scammed by Rick Singer, the reported mastermind behind the entire admissions fraud.

“She has claimed to friends that they always thought the money was going to a charity through the school,” a source tells ET. “She says she doesn't feel for one minute they were breaking the law."

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