Prosecutors are NOT willing to let Lori Loughlin off the hook so easily.
Earlier, we heard the Full House star’s chances of getting a late game plea deal had gone up thanks to a departmental dispute.
She and fashion designer hubby Mossimo Giannulli were arrested as part of the infamous Operation Varsity Blues and accused of bribing USC officials $500,000 to get their daughters fraudulently put on the crew team (despite the fact neither rowed) to ensure their conditional acceptance to the college.
The couple pleaded not guilty, but with their acknowledgement of the crimes caught on audio recording and others involved having already confessed and pled guilty, the case seems like a slam dunk.
However, insiders said prosecutors were worried after the probation department’s sentencing report of fellow college admissions scandal participant Felicity Huffman, which judged the crime to be victimless.
Related: Alec Baldwin Doesn’t Think Felicity Or Lori Should Serve Jail Time!
Considering colleges only admit a certain number of students every year, cheating your way into those opportunities definitely knocks innocent people off the list, but OK. Let’s say enough people think this way. Does it mean Lori is more likely to win her trial? Or to face an incredibly light sentence if she is found guilty?
Well, it turns out prosecutors are open to a plea deal, but they’re coming at it from a position of strength — they just hit the Giannulllis with yet ANOTHER new charge to go along with mail fraud and money laundering.
The US Attorney out of Boston just charged 11 of the 15 parents who had pleaded not guilty with a new crime: federal program bribery.
The bribery charge carries a max 5-year sentence btw, bringing Lori and Mossimo’s possible sentence to an intimidating 45 years.
Apparently the families were all given the heads up. They had a chance to reverse their pleas or else they would face even more charges, and four of the parents took deals.
(Some of the athletic officials involved were also hit by the bribery charges, as well as new fraud conspiracy charges. The prosecutors are NOT messing around.)
However, since Lori and Moss chose not to fold under the threat of another charge, they likely won’t take a plea deal at all. They vowed to fight this and they apparently still plan to.
So how are the girls taking all this? You know, the beneficiaries of all the alleged crimes, Olivia Jade and Isabella Giannulli?
They’re still living their best lives following officially cutting ties from USC; on Monday night they went to see the Jonas Brothers!
The infamous young women were spotted at the concert sharing a 4-seat box with with two girlfriends. Olivia’s on-again boyfriend Jackson Guthy was in a nearby box with three other guys.
According to witnesses spilling to ET, the couple met in the middle for a big kiss when Nick Jonas sang Jealous!
Awwww. How romantic! It’s like all the criminal charges and lifelong ignominy just melt away…
[Image via Adriana M. Barraza/WENN/Olivia Jade/Instagram.]
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