(MEDIAITE) After a long, drawn out and at times drama-filled process, Full House actress Lori Loughlin’s punishment for her admitted role in the college admissions scandal—otherwise known as “Operation Varsity Blues”—has been handed down.
Federal prosecutors had been at an impasse with Loughlin and her co-defendant fashion designer husband Mossimo Giannulli for just over a year. The government tacked on additional charges on two occasions in an apparent effort to persuade the defendants to enter more seriously into plea negotiations. Defense lawyers attempted to argue that the prosecution withheld exculpatory evidence and that the FBI coerced key witness William “Rick” Singer to lie; they tried to get the case tossed out entirely. The government admitted it made an error, but U.S. District Judge Nathaniel Gorton declined to toss the case.
