Lori Loughlin Was Released From Prison After Serving A 2-Month Sentence

Just in time for New Year’s, Lori Loughlin was reportedly released early from prison. On Monday, after two months at the Dublin Federal Correctional Institute, Loughlin walked away days before her scheduled release date after pleading guilty for her role in the college admissions scandal known as Operation Varsity Blues.

Loughlin and her husband, fashion designer Mossimo Giannulli, were both sentenced to prison in August; Loughlin received two months and Giannulli received five. The couple was also fined $150,00 and $250,000, respectively, and Loughlin was given 100 hours of community service, while Giannulli was given 250 hours. The former Full House star was two days shy from serving out the entirety of her sentence prior to Monday’s release, as she began her time at the Dublin prison on October 30. Giannulli, who is being held at a prison in Lompoc, Calif., is scheduled to be released on April 17, 2021.

Upon her release, Loughlin will now be supervised for the next two years, and Giannulli will receive the same supervised release once he is out.

The college admissions scandal and Hollywood’s role in it first came to light in March 2019, after it was revealed that Loughlin and Giannulli paid $500,000 to scam ringleader William "Rick" Singer to get their daughters —Olivia Jade and Isabella Rose Giannulli — into the University of Southern California on an athletic scholarship for the school’s crew team.

The scandal included staged photos of the girls on rowing machines. The couple initially claimed that they believed the money was going towards Singer’s charity Key Worldwide Foundation and USC itself, and Loughlin and Giannulli pleaded not guilty to charges of fraud, bribery, and money laundering in April 2019. The couple went in and out of court over the next year and eventually took a plea deal in May before ultimately being sentenced in August.

Loughlin has maintained throughout her trial that she took part in the scandal out of love for her daughters. Olivia Jade, an influencer, recently voiced her remorse for her family's role in the scandal in an episode of Jada Pinkett Smith's talk show Red Table Talk.

Actor Felicity Huffman was also charged for her role in the college admissions scandal and was sentenced to prison time, community service, and a fine. After paying Singer $15,000 to alter her daughter’s test scores, she was charged with fraud conspiracy, sentenced to two weeks in prison, and ultimately served 11 days in October before being released.