Source: ABC Photo Archives / Getty By now, we should’ve all learned that sitcom and T.V. legends aren’t off limits when it comes to a scandalous past. This proved to be true this week when well-known T.V. actors were charged for trying to finesse their kids into college. According to USA Today, Lori Loughlin is one person caught up in what’s being called the nation’s largest-ever college admissions bribery case prosecuted by the Justice Department. Loughlin famously played Aunt Becky in the forever-syndicated 1990s sitcom Full House. She was the love interest of the suave Uncle Jesse (played by John Stamos), and eventually they got married and had two adorable twins in the show. Picture-perfect story right? Too bad Aunty Becky was trying to play the education system in real life. The Justice Department charged 33 affluent parents, which included television stars and CEOs, with participating in a detailed conspiracy to get their kids into elite schools. The scheme included cheating on the SAT and ACT, as well as parents paying coaches “enormous sums” to accept students who’s athletic credentials weren’t realistic. In some instances, coaches agreed to pretend that students applying to their school were highly recruited athletes, when in actuality, the student didn’t even compete in that specific sport. Along with parents, people who have been charged include two ACT and SAT exam administrators, one exam proctor and one college administrator. At the core of the case was an admissions consultant named William Rick Singer, according to federal prosecutors. They say he ran a college counseling organization called “The Key,” which accepted more than $25 million in payments from parents from 2011 to February 2019. Singer is accused of funneling money to coaches and other education officials to guarantee students’ admission into top schools like Georgetown, Yale, Stanford, the University of Southern California and Wake Forest University. According to NBC News, Loughlin and her fashion designer husband Mossimo Giannulli agreed to pay $500,000 in bribes to boost their two daughters’ chances of getting admitted into USC, according to court papers. Loughlin even allegedly told a cooperating witness that she would arrange for one of her daughters to pose in a rowing machine in order to boost the false claim that she was the crew coxswain for the L.A. Marine Club team. Loughlin was charged with conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest services fraud. Felicity Huffman of Desperate Housewives fame was also an actress charged in the conspiracy. She and her husband, actor William H. Macy, allegedly paid $15,000 to get one of their daughters unlimited time for her SAT exam. Huffman faces the same charges as Loughlin. Her husband, however, wasn’t charged, whereas Loghlin and her husband were both charged in the scandal. Whew! It’s a lot. And people didn’t waste time ridiculing the T.V. stars for their dishonest endeavors. Loughlin especially got a lot of heat when the Full House references came flying. Some people foreshadowed Aunt Becky’s demise via alleged Full House easter eggs. People even brought up episodes where Aunt Becky ended up behind bars and when Uncle Jesse helped DJ cheat on her SAT test. But of course, there were some who wouldn’t let their childhood sitcom icon go out like this. Hit the next pages for more humorous tweets in response to the college scandal news. And if you’re in school, stay woke. You might be studying next to a student with rich no-good lying parents.
