Photo by John Tlumacki/The Boston Globe via Getty Images(LOS ANGELES) — Full House star Lori Loughlin — along with husband Mossimo Giannulli — face up to 50 years in prison if found guilty of bribing employees of the University of Southern California in order to secure their daughters’ enrollment.
Now, they want to have the entire case against them tossed.
Following reports that the government allegedly pressured& William “Rick” Singer, who has been identified as the ringleader in the college admissions scandal, to name Loughlin and Giannulli as his clients, the couple dispatched their lawyers to dismiss the charges.
“The extraordinary government misconduct presented in this case threatens grave harm to defendants and the integrity of this proceeding,” said Latham & Watkins attorneys in a federal court filing on Wednesday, which was obtained by Deadline. The attorneys added “That misconduct cannot be ignored.”
Currently, the married couple is set to face trial along with six other defendants in Boston on October 5.
Prosecutors have not responded to Wednesday’s filing. A judge has since ruled that the U.S. Attorney’s office has until March 27 to present their evidence against Giannulli and Loughlin.
As previously reported, both Loughlin, 55, and Giannulli, 56, have been named in an ongoing admissions scandal dubbed “Operation Varsity Blues,” and stand accused of paying $500,000 to a sham charity enacted by Singer to get their kids in as recruits of the rowing team despite that their daughters never participated in the spot.
In all, investigators have identified 53 wealthy individuals — including Desperate Housewives star Felicity Huffman — who used Singer’s service to get their kids into prestigious universities by cheating the system.
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