Felicity Huffman Pleads Guilty In College Bribery Scandal

Source: Boston Globe / Getty

Felicity Huffman Pleads Guilty In College Bribery Scandal

Felicity Huffman reportedly broke down in tears on Monday as she pleaded guilty to a scheme to boost her daughter’s SAT scores in federal court in Boston.

The former Desperate Housewives star is only one of dozens of parents charged in a conspiracy and bribery case involving wealthy families, corrupt college coaches, test proctors, and college consultants.

According to reports from NPR, the actress looked straight ahead, ignoring all of the reporters and cameras outside as she entered the courthouse to plead guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest services mail fraud.

Inside, she didn’t quite hold her composure as well, crying as she explained to the judge that her daughter knew nothing about the scam to inflate her test scores, along with claiming that her daughter’s accommodation for extra time on tests was legitimate. “Everything else” that she was accused of doing, “I did,” she admitted.

Those allegations include paying $15,000 to have someone correct her daughter’s wrong answers after she completed the test. The person making the corrections also pleaded guilty, though the exam proctor who allegedly allowed it to happen has pleaded not guilty.

Huffman is reportedly hoping her guilty plea will earn her some leniency at sentencing. In a statement released last month, she accepted “full responsibility for [her] actions” and expressed “deep regret and shame.” She also added, “I want to apologize to the students who work hard every day to get into college, and to their parents who make tremendous sacrifices to support their children and do so honestly.”

Prosecutors are recommending $20,000 in fines and a four-month prison sentence, but Huffman could end up serving even less time than that, possibly not even making it to jail at all.