SALT LAKE CITY — A guidance counselor at Olivia Jade Giannulli’s Los Angeles prep school will be called as a witness in the case against Lori Loughlin and Mossimo Giannulli, the Mercury News reports.
The counselor — “who raised concerns” about Jade’s admission to the University of Southern California — was reportedly “involved in some kind of confrontation” with Giannulli in spring 2018 “after questioning why Olivia Jade was admitted to USC as a crew athlete when she had never rowed for Marymount’s rowing team,” according to the Mercury News.
TooFab, an entertainment news site, reports the counselor could be called as a witness if the case against Loughlin and Giannulli ends up going to trial.
Flashback: The former “When Calls the Heart” star Loughlin and her fashion designer husband Giannulli allegedly paid $500,000 in bribes so that their daughters, Olivia Jade and Isabella Giannulli, would be admitted to the University of Southern California. The couple pleaded not guilty to two counts of fraud and money laundering charges. Those charges carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
- Other parents — including “Desperate Housewives” star Felicity Huffman — pleaded guilty in the case.
- As the Deseret News reported previously, Loughlin and her husband reportedly want the case to go to trial because they believe they can avoid a prison sentence. Loughlin and Giannulli will claim ignorance in the case, according to reports.
- For now, the couple is concerned with making sure their public image doesn’t fall apart. Loughlin and Giannulli have reportedly been in search of a crisis manager who can help them rebuild their public image in the wake of the scandal, according to the Deseret News.