Lori Loughlin Pleads Guilty in College Admissions Case

Actress and husband Mossimo Giannulli will be sentenced in August

Lori Loughlin
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Lori Loughlin and her husband Mossimo Giannulli plead guilty on Friday to conspiracy charges in connection with their involvement in the college admissions case that secured their two daughters enrollment at the University of Southern California.

The couple appeared before U.S. District Judge Nathaniel Gorton via Zoom on Friday. When asked how she pleaded, the Loughlin responded “guilty.” Giannulli gave a similar response.

Gorton said sentencing will take place on Aug. 21, 2020.

Earlier this month, a federal judge rejected Loughlin and Giannulli’s request to dismiss the charges against them based on accusations of misconduct by investigators working on the bribery case. At that time, the couple — who were charged with three separate counts of bribery, fraud and money laundering — was still set to go to trial on their previously announced Oct. 5 court date, along with other families involved in the felony case.

As part of her plea deal, Loughlin plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud and has agreed to serve two months in prison. The “Full House” alum will also be fined $150,000, have two years of supervised release and perform 100 hours of community service.

For Giannulli’s agreement, he plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud and honest services wire and mail fraud and has agreed to spend five months behind bars. Loughlin’s husband will also pay a $250,000 fine, have two years of supervised release and serve 250 hours of community service.

Per the U.S. district court, “The charge of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and honest services mail and wire fraud provides for a sentence of up 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater.”

“Under the plea agreements filed today, these defendants will serve prison terms reflecting their respective roles in a conspiracy to corrupt the college admissions process and which are consistent with prior sentences in this case. We will continue to pursue accountability for undermining the integrity of college admissions,” United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling said in a statement Thursday.

Representatives for Loughlin did not immediately respond to TheWrap’s request for comment on her decision to plead guilty.

Loughlin and Giannulli were arrested in March 2019 as part of a nationwide college admissions cheating case. In total, more than 50 people were charged with paying bribes of up to $6 million to get their children into top universities like Yale, Stanford, Georgetown and USC in what authorities described as the “largest college admissions scam ever prosecuted by the Department of Justice.”

The FBI operation, dubbed “Operation Varsity Blues,” also led to the arrest of actress Felicity Huffman, who pleaded guilty last fall to one count of mail fraud and served less than two weeks in prison.

Following her arrest, Loughlin was dropped from the final season of Netflix’s “Full House” reboot, “Fuller House.” Hallmark Channel, where Loughlin starred on “When Calls the Heart” as well as top-lined numerous original films, also cut ties with the actress.

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