As Felicity Huffman just learned, you do the crime, you do the time. For Lori Loughlin, the heat is on after Huffman pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud and received a 14-day prison sentence. Loughlin could also face prison time — especially since her case is going to trial.
“If [Loughlin is] found guilty, she will go to jail; that is clear,” a source told People. “And if another deal is offered to her, which I don’t think it will be, she will go to jail...Now there is no deal on the table, and she has to have faith that the courts and the prosecution will move fairly and not make an example out of her.” In other words, the source expects that even if a plea deal was offered by prosecutors, it would still include a prison sentence. Ouch.
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Loughlin is standing firm. Since she pleaded not guilty, she is expected to face trial with her husband, Mossimo Giannulli — but reportedly wishes she had pleaded guilty. “She didn’t understand the entire nature of the charges against her, and she wasn’t even sure if or how she had broken the law,” said People’s source.
Loughlin could avoid doing time if she is found not guilty at trial. “Her only chance of avoiding jail is to beat these charges. Lori is a smart woman; she understands that. She’s scared and upset, but she’s resolved to be strong and to fight this. She will do what she has to do to protect herself and her family.”
What kind of prison sentence she could face is unclear, but it is worth noting that Huffman and Loughlin’s cases are different. Huffman pleaded guilty to paying $15,000 to have her child’s SAT score altered; Loughlin has pleaded not guilty to allegedly paying a $500,000 bribe to get her daughters, Olivia Jade and Isabella Rose, accepted into the University of Southern California (both were granted admission). Loughlin’s charges are much more serious than Huffman’s, and she could receive a significantly longer sentence if found guilty.