Felicity Huffman has been sentenced to 14 days in jail, a $30,000 fine, 250 hours of community service, and a year of supervised probation according to reports from NBC1o Boston and TMZ.
Her sentencing breaks with the government’s original demands. Court records obtained by Jezebel revealed that prosecutors sought a $20,000 fine, one month in prison, and 12 years of supervised release. Huffman’s team countered, arguing that the court had grossly overstated her crime and it’s relationship to similar cases:
The cases the government cites to support [its] proposition are very different from this case. The government does not describe the sentencing guidelines ranges applicable in any of the federal cases it cites, although most of those ranges are matters of public record. The government’s omision is telling; in fact, the guidelines ranges in each of those cases was higher than Ms. Huffman’s—much higher in most cases. The defendants in the cases the government cites were also typically the masterminds of the schemes—the equivalent of Rick Singer in this case. And in the cases the government cites, individuals like Ms. Huffman—retail customers of the scheme’s ring- leader—were often not prosecuted at all.
Surprisingly, it appears the judge agreed. Shortly before issuing her verdict, she addressed the court and stated: “There is little I need to do in sentencing to protect the community from Ms. Huffman going forward.”
Huffman is also the first parent to be formally sentenced in the government’s sweeping “Operation Varsity Blues” crackdown on college admissions fraud. During her sentencing, CNN reported that Huffman was apologetic. The actress admitted: “I take full responsibility for my actions, I will deserve whatever punishment you give me.”
You can read letters to the court from Felicity Huffman, Marc Cherry, Eva Longoria, and William H. Macy below.