Lori Loughlin and Mossimo Giannulli’s Daughters Bella and Olivia Have ‘Peace of Mind’ After Plea Deal

A sense of relief. Lori Loughlin and Mossimo Giannulli’s daughters, Bella and Olivia, have “peace of mind” following their parents’ plea deal in the college admissions scandal, a source exclusively tells In Touch.

“They know that their parents had their best interests at heart when they did what they did, but it was wrong and they got caught,” the insider says. “They should have admitted their guilt from the beginning, but now that they have, they can all move on.”

On Thursday, May 21, the United States Department of Justice announced in a press release both Loughlin, 55, and Giannulli, 56, will plead guilty to conspiracy in relation to the nationwide scandal. The former Full House star plans to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud, while Giannulli will also plead guilty to conspiracy in addition to honest service wire and mail fraud. In return for their guilty pleas, Loughlin will serve two months in prison, pay a $150,000 fine and have two years of supervised release with 100 hours of community service, depending on the court’s approval. As for Giannulli, he will be sentenced to five months in prison, a $250,000 fine and two years of supervised release with 250 hours of community service. Their date in court has yet to be scheduled.

“This decision didn’t come easy,” the source continues. “[Lori] and Mossimo were so adamant about their innocence, but the pressures of the trial and the thought of spending years behind bars finally wore them down. Bottom line, she was done fighting.”

Loughlin and Giannulli allegedly “agreed to pay bribes totaling $500,000 in exchange for having their two daughters as recruits to the USC crew team,” although they never played the sport, court documents stated.

On April 8, federal prosecutors released photos of Bella, 21, and Olivia, 20, posing on rowing equipment, which were submitted to the university to help give the appearance of legitimacy on their college applications. After the incriminating evidence was revealed, the daughters “begged” Loughlin to “plead guilty or make some kind of deal if it’s not too late,” another source told In Touch in April.

Loughlin and Giannulli were charged with conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest services mail fraud in connection with the college admissions scandal in March 2019. They were among the 15 parents caught up in the crime. They first pleaded not guilty to the charges in April 2019, and then in October after being hit with additional charges of conspiracy to commit federal program bribery. They finally backed down in May.