More On: college admissions scandal
Mossimo Giannulli reports to prison for 5-month sentence
Mossimo Giannulli shaves his head before prison
Lori Loughlin’s cushy prison offers yoga, pilates and music lessons
Lori Loughlin’s request to serve sentence at California prison approved
Lori Loughlin sentenced to two months for college admissions scandal
She’s going from “Full House” to the big house. Lori Loughlin has agreed to serve two months behind bars as part of her plea deal in the college admissions scandal — while her hubby Mossimo Giannulli is expected to serve five months. Here is how their expected sentences compare to others doled out in the …
She’s going from “Full House” to the big house.
Lori Loughlin has agreed to serve two months behind bars as part of her plea deal in the college admissions scandal — while her hubby Mossimo Giannulli is expected to serve five months.
Here is how their expected sentences compare to others doled out in the Varsity Blues bust:
Fellow TV-actress Felicity Huffman was sentenced to 14 days in prison — though prosecutors recommended one month.
Another well-heeled parent, ex-CEO Douglas Hodge got nine months, the heaviest punishment in the case so far, after prosecutors asked for two years.
Prosecutors had recommended a 15-month stint for California wine dealer Agustin Huneeus, who ended up getting five months in jail, after pleading guilty to a single count of fraud and conspiracy.
Elizabeth Henriquez, who prosecutors say“gloated” with her daughter after cheating on an exam to help her get into Georgetown University, was sentenced to seven months, though prosecutors had asked for about two years.
For parenting book author Jane Buckingham, the feds had asked for six months behind bars. But she was sentenced to three weeks for shelling out $50,000 for an ACT proctor to take the exam for her son.
Manhattan businessman Gregory Abbott and his wife Marcia each got a month behind bars for paying $125,000 to fudge their daughter’s SAT and ACT scores, after prosecutors had suggested they receive eight.
And prosecutors had suggested 21 months for Hot Pockets heiress Michelle Janavs, but she got five months — which she wants to serve at home due to the coronavirus pandemic. She admitted paying $100,000 to boost one of her daughter’s test scores and $200,000 to have another daughter labeled as a fake beach volleyball recruit.
The differences come down to the various charges each parent copped to — and how much money they paid to help their kids get into elite schools, legal experts told The Post.
For example, Huffman, the one-time “Desperate Housewives” star, had pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest services mail fraud for paying a proctor $15,000 to rig her daughter Sophia Grace Macy’s SAT exam.
“Huffman’s charges related only to test scores not the admissions process, others, like Loughlin’s, related to the admissions process but not test scores, and some did both,” said Eric MacMichael a white collar litigator at California-based firm Keker, Van Nest & Peters.
And when it comes to fraud charges, penalties are generally driven by the number figures, the experts said.
Hodge, for instance, had pleaded guilty to a slew of conspiracy, fraud and money laundering charges for paying $850,000 over more than a decade to get four of his kids admitted to elite universities.
Meanwhile, Loughlin, 55, and Giannulli, 56, are accused of paying $500,000 to get their daughters, Olivia Jade and Isabella Rose Giannulli, into the University of Southern California as crew recruits — even though neither girl had every competed in the sport.
The length of time it took for the couple to admit their guilt didn’t appear to be a factor when prosecutors made their sentencing request, experts said.
After more than a year of professing their innocence, the couple have agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and mail fraud. Giannulli will also plead guilty to honest services wire and mail fraud, an indication that he was more involved in the scheme, prosecutors said.
In addition to the time behind bars, Loughlin has agreed to perform 100 hours of community service and pay a $150,000 fine — and her husband to pay a $250,000 fine and 250 hours of community service, according to court documents.
The penalties “are certainly right in the middle of the range, if anything they might be slightly lower” than what other defendants who pleaded guilty received, said MacMichael.
But the judge will still have to accept the terms of Loughlin and Giannulli’s agreements or they will be voided, the experts said.
There’s also a chance the couple will still request to spend their sentence under home confinement, in light of the coronavirus pandemic.
“It’s a sign that the prosecutors and the defendants wanted certainty in what the court would do,” former Manhattan federal prosecutor Paul Krieger told The Post of the agreement.
Another former Manhattan federal prosecutor, Alvin Bragg, said the deal was a “real benefit” to the defense, since “you know what your sentence is going to be.”
“But on the other hand, with the history of sentencing, maybe prosecutors wanted some kind of guarantee that the judge wasn’t going to go below,” said Bragg, who’s running for Manhattan district attorney.
It’s also a way for the feds to “close out this chapter” by coming to an agreement in the case, he added.
