Felicity Huffman Has Completed Her Full Sentence
Felicity Huffman and William H. Macy's names are usually in the news for an acclaimed film role—or even an endearing red carpet pose. Lately, however, that hasn't been the case.
News broke in March 2019 that Huffman was charged in the Justice Department's investigation into rigging college admissions. Nicknamed "Operation Varsity Blues," the probe concluded that numerous people had conspired "to use bribery and other forms of fraud" to get their kids into top colleges, according to court documents. (For reasons still unclear, although Macy is referred to in the court filing, he was not charged.)
That month, Huffman appeared in court, and posted a $250,000 bond. Weeks later, she issued an apology. "This transgression toward [my daughter] and the public I will carry for the rest of my life," she said, per the New York Times. "My desire to help my daughter is no excuse to break the law or engage in dishonesty."
On May 13 of that year Huffman formally plead guilty in court. According to CNN, prosecutors recommended sentencing her to four months in prison and 12 months of supervised release, on top of a $20,000 fine. Then, in mid-September, Huffman has been sentenced to 14 days in prison. She'll also have to pay a $30,000 fine and perform 250 hours of community service, per NBC.
Months later, after reporting to the Federal Correctional Institution in Dublin, California on October 15, Huffman was released early. Although Huffman's representative previously told NBC that she expected to serve her full 14 days, the actress had been slated to leave on Sunday, the 13th day of her sentence. Then, a prison policy (which allows inmates to be released prior to their scheduled date, if it that date falls on a weekend) pushed Huffman's release up a couple days, to Friday, October 25, 2019.
Now, one year later, she's completed her full sentence, which also required 250 hours of community service and a year of supervised release.
With all of this behind her, it seems that she's hoping to resume her acting career as well. A source told ET that Huffman had a new agent, and "at some point in the near future, she’s looking forward to going back to work."
Here's how Huffman, Macy, and their two daughters were ensnared in the landmark investigation.
Felicity Huffman
The actress, best known for her work on Desperate Housewives and her Oscar-nominated turn in Transamerica, is accused of fixing the conditions for her older daughter Sophia's SAT test. She also allegedly explored inflating her younger daughter's score, before deciding against it.
Court documents reveal that William Singer, the central figure in the scandal, met with Huffman and William H. Macy in their home ahead of the December 2017 SAT. Singer "advised Huffman and her spouse that he 'controlled' a testing center, and could arrange for a third party to purport to proctor their daughter’s SAT and secretly correct her answers afterwards."
The result? "Ultimately, Huffman’s daughter received a score of 1420 on the SAT, an improvement of approximately 400 points over her PSAT," per the Justice Department documents.
To pay for Singer's help, Huffman and Macy reportedly made a $15,000 donation to the Key Worldwide Foundation—a fake charity that Singer had founded. An employee at the foundation then sent a reply, "falsely stating that [the donation] would 'allow us to move forward with our plans to provide educational and self-enrichment programs to disadvantaged youth," according to court documents.
William H. Macy
Macy, famous for acting in Fargo, Shameless, Boogie Nights, and numerous other movies and TV shows, has a less clear role in the scandal. He is mentioned in court documents as Huffman's spouse, but not by name, and was not charged.
At this point, it remains unclear why he was excluded from the indictments. Theories include that prosecutors may have been unsure if they had enough evidence to charge him, that he cooperated with agents, or that charges will be filed later. As Rebecca Roiphe, a New York Law School professor and former prosecutor, floated to Vulture, it's also possible that Macy was simply "far less culpable. Maybe it’s possible that the government has far more evidence than it’s laid out here, and in this evidence, that Huffman played a far more significant role than her husband."
Sophia Grace Macy
Sophia was unaware that her parents had fixed her SAT scores. Huffman confirmed this to People in 2019, saying that Sophia "knew absolutely nothing" about the plan. In a letter to a judge on her case, Huffman noted that Sophia was extremely upset when she learned of her parents' scheme. "When my daughter looked at me and asked with tears streaming down her face, 'Why didn’t you believe in me? Why didn’t you think I could do it on my own?' I had no adequate answer for her," Huffman wrote. "I could only say, 'I am sorry.'"
And now, Sophia has earned a spot at a prestigious college on her own. After retaking the SAT, she was accepted at Carnegie Mellon University's drama program. "Felicity is so proud and grateful that Sofia has kept her chin up over the last year," a source told People. "It was a painful, challenging time and she pulled through it with strength and grace."
Sophia, 19, seems to be following her parents' Hollywood path. Prior to studying acting in college, she was already honing her skills in high school. "My daughter Sophia, the oldest, is going to LAHSA [Los Angeles High School of the Arts]," William H. Macy told Parade in January 2019. "She’s thriving there. I know she’s going to make a go of it in the business, which I support. I’ve seen her; she’s good, she’s really good."
Georgia Grace Macy
Huffman and Macy's younger daughter, Georgia, has largely stayed out of the spotlight. Her father did give Parade a hint about what she was up to. "My daughter Georgia, she’s interested in politics, political science and pursuing that," he said. "She’s in a very academic school and killing it."
According to People, Georgia is planning to attend Vassar College in the fall.
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