Felicity Huffman Out On $250K Bail After Arrest In College Fraud Sting

Actress Felicity Huffman‘s has walked out of court on a $250,000 bail after she was arrested for allegedly paying a dodgy business to help boost her daughter’s college admission score.

Huffman is among 46 people charged in relation to the college fraud case, which is being described as the biggest ever prosecuted by the US Department of Justice.

The central operator of the scheme, William “Rick” Singer, pled guilty in a Boston federal court on Tuesday on charges of racketeering conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy, conspiracy to defraud the United States and obstruction of justice.

Huffman, 56, is accused of paying $15,000 disguised as a charity donation to assist her daughter in cheating on her SAT exam. Her husband, actor William H. Macy, has not been charged, and supported her in court.

Many have asked why Macy was not charged, given he is also a parent, and the natural assumption is that he would be involved in these conversations. There’s a good writeup over at Vulture explaining why he might not have been charged, even if he was involved:

Why was Macy kept (semi-)anonymous in the complaint? Roiphe explained that when a conspirator isn’t named, it could be evidence that they had cooperated with the investigation. Or prosecutors could simply not be ready to charge them yet.

The complaint alleges that both Huffman and Macy attempted to organise a similar arrangement for their younger daughter, but did not proceed.

The Los Angeles Times has backed up a report by TMZ that Huffman was arrested under somewhat hostile circumstances: she opened the door to her LA home at approximately 6 a.m. to be greeted by a group of FBI agents with drawn firearms. A spokesperson for the FBI said that agents “are armed and may draw their weapons as a precautionary measure.”

The actress then spent hours in detention in downtown LA.

Huffman’s next court date is March 29.

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