Felicity Huffman faces months behind bars after the TV star pleaded guilty to a fraud scheme in the U.S. college admissions scandal, admitting she paid $15,000 to cheat on her eldest daughter’s entrance exam.
Huffman, who issued a pained apology last month, wept as she discussed her daughter’s learning disability with U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani in Boston. Prosecutors have said some parents falsely claimed their children needed extra time on the test as part of the scheme to boost their scores. In court Monday, Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric Rosen said they weren’t making such a claim about Huffman.
Huffman, 56, told Talwani: “We have been working with a neuropsychiatrist since my daughter was eight years old. She, like my daughter, didn’t know anything about this.”
Just before Huffman’s appearance, Devin Sloane, 53, a Los Angeles-based water-services executive, pleaded guilty. Five parents have now entered guilty pleas in the biggest college admissions scam the U.S. has ever prosecuted.
“Do you understand, then, that I may impose a sentence more severe than you anticipated?” Talwani told Huffman and Sloane in turn.
“Yes, your honor,” both responded.
Criminal Bookends
Like all 14 parents who have agreed to plead guilty, Huffman and Sloane are charged with a single count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest-services mail fraud. The charge carries a maximum term of 20 years in prison, though federal sentencing guidelines can bring that number down significantly for parents who acknowledge their crime, have a clean record and meet other criteria. At least eight other parents are scheduled to plead guilty next week.
Huffman, who became famous starring in the eight-season ABC series “Desperate Housewives,” and Sloane make an odd pair of criminal bookends.
The star, with her A-list actor husband, William H. Macy of the Showtime series “Shameless,” allegedly paid ringleader William “Rick” Singer one of the smallest sums in the $25 million admissions-cheating ring. Sloane, the founder of the drinking- and waste-water company AquaTecture LLC, was accused of paying Singer $250,000 to get his son into the University of Southern California as an international water polo player, when his school didn’t even have a team.