Actress Felicity Huffman, one of the many parents involved in the massive Operation Varsity Blues college admissions scam, was released from prison after serving only 11 days of the 14-day sentence. Huffman had pleaded guilty in May of this year after admitting that she paid someone to take her daughter’s SAT college exam. She had disguised her $15,000 bribe as a charitable payment. She was sentenced in September and ordered to report to a low-security prison located in Dublin, California in October. Prison officials have stated that Huffman’s “early release” is normal federal prison policy for inmates who are scheduled to be released on weekends. Upon her release, Huffman will also have to complete 250 hours of community service, in addition to paying a $30,000 fine. The sentences of Huffman and the other parents in the college admissions scam have received criticism for being too short and lenient, further highlighting issues of sentence disparity.
Instructors, click on the link below to download this week’s lecture for use in your classroom.
The deck contains a writing prompt, a debate question, as well as other assessment questions.
Video
Articles
· “Felicity Huffman released early from 14-day prison sentence”
· “Felicity Huffman completes prison sentence, released early”
· “Felicity Huffman released after serving 11 days for the college admissions scam”
· “Felicity Huffman released from prison early after college admissions scam sentence”
Assessment
- Writing: What issues were highlighted as a result of the college admissions scandal and the sentences received by the parents involved?
- Debate: Federal prison policies should be changed to ensure that inmates serve their entire sentence.
- Poll: Do you believe that Felicity Huffman’s sentence was too lenient?
- Short Answer: Why is Felicity Huffman’s departure from prison not considered early release for good behavior?
Current Events Quiz
1.) Felicity Huffman served her entire sentence in a _____ security prison.
a. low
b. medium
c. maximum
d. supermax
2.) In addition to her prison sentence, Felicity Huffman will _____.
a. pay a $30,000 fine
b. spend the next year on supervised release
c. complete 250 hours of community service
d. all of these
3.) Huffman served approximately _____ of per sentence.
a. 15 percent
b. 56 percent
c. 78 percent
d. 92 percent
- Huffman pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest services mail fraud. (T/F)
- Huffman has received the longest sentence of those sentenced in the college admissions scam. (T/F)
- Huffman was released early due to good behavior. (T/F)
Feature Image: Federal Bureau of Prisons, FCI Dublin