Lori Loughlin And Her Husband Pleaded Guilty Via Zoom For Their Role In The College Admission Scam

The Full House actor pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges after she and her husband paid bribes to secure their daughters' admissions to the University of Southern California.

Full House actor Lori Loughlin and her husband, Mossimo Giannulli, pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges in the nationwide college admissions bribery scandal, during a Zoom hearing on Friday.

As part of the couple's plea agreement Loughlin, 55, has agreed to a sentence of two months in prison, a $150,000 fine, and two years of supervised release with 100 hours of community service.

Giannulli, 56, has agreed to a five-month sentence in prison, a $250,000 fine, and two years of supervised release with 250 hours of community service.

Even though Loughlin and prosecutors agreed on a sentence to recommend, the judge isn't bound by that and can hand down a sentence that's shorter or longer.

During Friday's plea hearing on Zoom, Judge Nathaniel Gorton set Aug. 21 as the sentencing date for the couple. After he receives the pre-sentencing report, Gorton will decide whether to accept or reject their plea agreement.

During the Zoom call, Loughlin and Giannulli did not speak much besides saying "yes, your honor" to the procedural questions asked by Gorton.

There were several times when the judge requested Loughlin to "unmute" while she was replying. At one point, when the judge was talking, he was told, "you're on mute, your honor."

Loughlin and Giannulli were accused of spending $500,000 in bribes to ringleader William "Rick" Singer's purported charity and university officials to get both their daughters into the University of Southern California.

Loughlin pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud, while Giannulli pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud and honest services wire and mail fraud, prosecutors said.

Last month, prosecutors released rowing photos that the couple allegedly used in their daughters' college applications to show that the young women were rowers even though they weren't.

The photos appeared to show their daughters, Isabella Rose Giannulli and social media influencer Olivia Jade Giannulli, wearing workout clothes and using rowing machines. The daughters are not charged with any crimes.

Giannulli had emailed the photos to Singer so he could create their student-athlete profiles to gain admission to USC, according to court documents. Both their daughters were no longer enrolled in USC following their parents' indictment in the scam last March.

Loughlin and Giannulli are the 23rd and 24th parents to plead guilty in the college admissions case.

Last year, Desperate Housewives actor Felicity Huffman was sentenced to 14 days in prison after she pleaded guilty to fraud charges for paying $15,000 to get her daughter’s college entrance test answers corrected in order to raise her score.


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