Unlike many of her peers accused of participating in a wide-reaching college admissions scandal, Full House star Lori Loughlin and her fashion designer husband Mossimo Giannulli pled not guilty to the charges brought against them. How will they defend their alleged actions? According to one lawyer, the defense that could be best is in aggressive parenting.
Loughlin and Giannulli are accused of faking their daughters way into the University of Southern California, via alleged ringleader William “Rick” Singer. Per reports, Loughlin allegedly had daughter Olivia Jade pose with rowing equipment to “prove” that the teen was on her high school crew team. In reality, neither Olivia Jade or her sister Isabella Rose had never participated in the sport, but both allegedly got into USC as recruits to the university’s crew team. Loughlin and Giannulli allegedly paid $500,000 to participate in the scam.
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In the wake of reports stating that Loughlin believed any mother would have done the same for her kids, legal experts state that the couple’s best defense may be that they were just trying to help their children succeed, and that, in doing so, were “manipulated” into taking illegal actions.
According to The Los Angeles Times interview with defense attorney Lara Yeretsian, who does not represent Loughlin or Giannulli, this is the best course of action to take, despite alleged evidence — like recorded conversations and emails against — against the pair.
“These are parents trying to help their kids. Yes, it is parenting on steroids,” said Yeretsian to The Los Angeles Times.
This particular defense would hinge on painting Singer as a manipulator who conned Loughlin and Giannulli into participation in the scam. However, it would be difficult to explain the reason for the large payment that Loughlin and Giannulli allegedly gave Singer.
Felicity Huffman, another Hollywood star involved in the scandal, pled guilty this week, and offered an apology to the public and her daughter, who was allegedly unaware of her mother’s actions. In addition to Huffman, 13 others in the case pled guilty.