Lori Loughlin and her husband, Mossimo Giannulli, are gearing up for a fight.
On Monday (April 15), the former Full House star and her fashion designer husband entered a not guilty plea to each charge against them in the college admissions scandal.
The two are among dozens of wealthy parents accused of scamming elite colleges and universities to get their children in. Loughlin and Giannulli allegedly paid $500,000 to make it look like their daughter had been a rower so that she could be accepted into the University of Southern California. They were initially arrested on a felony charge of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest services mail fraud. However, last week, the Department of Justice charged them with an additional felony count of money laundering, so they are now facing up to 20 years behind bars for each charge.
While several other indicted parents have also entered not-guilty pleas, actress Felicity Huffman, and 12 other wealthy parents, plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest services mail fraud as part of the college admissions scandal last Monday (April 8).
"I am pleading guilty to the charge brought against me by the United States Attorney's Office," Huffman said in a statement. "I am in full acceptance of my guilt, and with deep regret and shame over what I have done, I accept full responsibility for my actions and will accept the consequences that stem from those actions."
"I am ashamed of the pain I have caused my daughter, my family, my friends, my colleagues and the educational community," the statement continued. "I want to apologize to them and, especially, I want to apologize to the students who work hard every day to get into college, and to their parents who make tremendous sacrifices to support their children and do so honestly. My daughter knew absolutely nothing about my actions, and in my misguided and profoundly wrong way, I have betrayed her. This transgression toward her and the public I will carry for the rest of my life. My desire to help my daughter is no excuse to break the law or engage in dishonesty."
Huffman admitted to paying $15,000 to a fake charity associated with Rick Singer, the facilitator of the college scam, "to participate in the college entrance exam cheating scheme on behalf of her oldest daughter," read her indictment.
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