"Desperate Housewives" star Felicity Huffman was sentenced Friday to 14 days in prison for paying USD 15,000 to rig her daughter's SAT scores, tearfully apologising to the teenager for not trusting her to get into college on her own.
"I was frightened, I was stupid, and I was so wrong," Huffman, 56, said as she became the first parent sentenced in a college admissions scandal that ensnared dozens of wealthy and well-connected mothers and fathers.
The scandal exposed the lengths to which parents will go to get their children into the "right" schools and reinforced suspicions that the college admissions process is slanted toward the rich.
In sentencing Huffman, US District Judge Indira Talwani noted the outrage the case has generated, adding that it "isn't because people discovered that it isn't a true meritocracy out there."
The outrage, she said, was because Huffman took steps "to get one more advantage" in a system "already so distorted by money and privilege."
"And I especially want to apologise to the students who work hard every day to get into college, and to their parents who make tremendous sacrifices supporting their children."
"Parenthood is terrifying, exhausting and stressful, but that's what every parent goes through. ... What parenthood does not do, it does not make you a felon, it does not make you cheat, in fact it makes you want to serve as a positive role model for your children."
"I just wanted to give her a shot at being considered for a program where her acting talent would be the deciding factor."
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