Felicity Huffman Sentenced to 14 Days in Jail, Community Service for Role in College Admissions Scandal

Actress Felicity Huffman was sentenced on Friday to 14 days in jail and 250 hours of community service, after she pleaded guilty to her involvement in the college admissions scandal.

Huffman also will pay a $30,000 fine and spend one year on supervised release, per BuzzFeed News reporter Julia Reinstein.

Friday’s sentence differs from an earlier recommendation made by federal prosecutors, who suggested the actress serve one month in jail and pay a $20,000 fine. Huffman’s attorneys had asked that she instead be sentenced to a year of community service, and 27 individuals — including Desperate Housewives creator Marc Cherry and co-star Eva Longoria — wrote the judge letters of support on Huffman’s behalf.

In March, Huffman was one of more than 30 people to be indicted for allegedly taking part in a nationwide scheme through which parents paid hefty bribes to get their kids accepted to elite universities. The actress later pleaded guilty to committing mail fraud and honest services fraud in connection with paying $15,000 to have someone take the SAT in place of her older daughter, which ultimately resulted in a 1420 score for her.

In other cases, college entrance-exam administrators were allegedly bribed to allow cheating on the tests, and university athletic coaches were paid to designate school applicants as athletic recruits, regardless of the student’s athletic ability or experience playing a sport. The money for the payments was allegedly funneled through a charity to disguise the wrongdoing.

Huffman gave the following statement after her sentencing:

I accept the court’s decision today without reservation. I have always been prepared to accept whatever punishment Judge Talwani imposed. I broke the law. I have admitted that and I pleaded guilty to this crime. There are no excuses or justifications for my actions. Period. I would like to apologize again to my daughter, my husband, my family and the educational community for my actions. And I especially want to apologize to the students who work hard every day to get into college, and to their parents who make tremendous sacrifices supporting their children. I have learned a lot over the last six months about my flaws as a person. My goal now is to serve the sentence that the court has given me. I look forward to doing my community service hours and making a positive impact on my community. I also plan to continue making contributions wherever I can well after those service hours are completed. I can promise you that in the months and years to come that I will try and live a more honest life, serve as a better role model for my daughters and family and continue to contribute my time and energies wherever I am needed. My hope now is that my family, my friends and my community will forgive me for my actions.

Fuller House actress Lori Loughlin, who also was indicted for her alleged involvement in the scheme, pleaded not guilty back in April. She and husband Mossimo Giannulli are currently facing charges of conspiracy to commit fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering.