In the ongoing circus that is the college admissions scandal, a new and equally chaotic element has plagued the upcoming trial of Lori Loughlin and other parents involved in "Operation Varsity Blues." Loughlin, who pleaded not guilty to charges of fraud, bribery, and money laundering, has been the poster child of the case for some time, following Felicity Huffman's 11-day prison stint. In exchange for getting her daughters Olivia Jade and Isabella Rose admitted to the University of Southern California, Loughlin and husband Mossimo Giannulli seem to continue scouring the earth for new defence tactics ahead of trial. In the latest episode of this ongoing drama, Loughlin is being accused of withholding evidence from federal prosecutors on the case — and it's no coincidence that these accusations come just days before Loughlin's next court date.
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Before any trial, participating parties are required to share information that includes documents and key evidence during the discovery process. According to The Boston Herald, federal prosecutors are saying that Loughlin and Giannulli, among several other parents accused, have failed to turn over evidence to the court despite government requests. This comes ahead of a status conference set for Loughlin this Friday in Boston federal court. Currently, there are only two parents, William McGlashan and Robert Zangrillo, who have provided evidence during discovery.
While Loughlin and other parents claimed in a court filing that it seemed “premature” to submit evidence at this time, the government countered. “The Government disagrees with the Defendants’ assertion that it is 'premature' to provide their own discovery,” the filing says.
“The Defendants have now had approximately eight months to review the Government’s discovery, confer with their clients, and strategize regarding potential defences. It is not premature to provide discovery, which they can later supplement, to the Government as required by the rules.” Currently, a whopping 3 million pages of evidence have already been submitted to defence attorneys by the government, including phone logs, bank records, emails and more.
Loughlin and her husband Mossimo Giannulli are among 36 parents who have been accused of paying lump sums to a criminal network led by Rick Singer. The college admissions consultant was allegedly hired by parents to game the system by way of tasks like fixing college entrance scores for high schoolers trying for elite colleges or helping to admit them as faux athletes. In total, 53 people have been charged in the case and thirty people have already pled guilty, with the rest going to trial.
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After pleading not guilty to the federal charges against them, Loughlin's team has been preparing for trial for months, with no end in sight to all this madness. The current charges against Loughlin and her husband include conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, honest services fraud, money laundering and federal programs bribery.
Amidst other ridiculous statements that have come through in this scandal recently, Loughlin claimed in December of 2019 that she and her husband were under the assumption the money they were spending was all for charity.
As the case currently stands, Loughlin seems to carry nothing but a full house of lies and excuses on her hands. Yet she and her husband continue to claim they’ve been denied a fair trial.