Community Chat

[suzyQ3]

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@PinkSunset wrote:

As I've been reading posts from here throughout all this it seems to me that people are so bloodthirsty here. They want jail time. "Locl 'em up". Abhor these people. 

I have a different and I'm sure unpopular opinion about this.

First off if what  they did unethical? yes. Is it illegal? A crime against the state, jail time? Why would anyone want them in a jail that can;t even hold criminals now who commit felonies that hurt society or are violent in some way. 

So they have money and used it. I these 2 were just some ordinary people living in your neighborhood and got their kids into college by using special favors or pretending thei kid was an athlete would you care? Would it make the news? I doubt it. this seems to be more about the fact that they are rich celebrities and did this and by using money and power it rankles people. Well, you know what? People use money and power to get themselves and family members jobs too. How many know of someone or yourself who applied for a job, was totally qualified and experienced and the job went to someone whose parent is a friend of one of the Board of directors and so got a special favor? It happens all the time. 

I read a story a couple days ago about a woman from Texas who sold her chidren for money to pay her drug debts and buy more drugs. The judge gave her 6 years in prison, she'll probably gt out in 3 and get those same kids back. that, to me, is a real crime and certainly not enough jail time for selling a child. Do these actresses deserve jail time for what they did? Can it even compare? and don't get me started about the kid from Empire, How come there is no outrage about him using money and privilege to buy his way out of a real crime that could have had devastating effects.

I guess its just me but I take things in perspective, Compared to the real crime being committed, I think there is far too much press given to them. Pay a fine, make a donation and then go home and live life quietly. Lori will probably never work in television again and Felicity will be quiet for awhile, the  show up in a movie somewhere and no one will care. 

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Other than the fact that some of the actions are indeed crimes, I agree with you.

[Johnnyeager]

For all we know right now, Felicity and Bill didn't take that $15,000 "donation" as a deduction even though they were given the fake receipt.  The IRS can find out during an audit.

She didn't cop to that in her agreement.

[Cakers3]

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@Johnnyeager wrote:

For all we know right now, Felicity and Bill didn't take that $15,000 "donation" as a deduction even though they were given the fake receipt.  The IRS can find out during an audit.

She didn't cop to that in her agreement.

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@Johnnyeager   I agree that right now Felicity did not admit to that but my post was a general statement in terms of the possibility of tax evasion for any of the parents who were involved in this scam.

We know that the "Foundation" was a ruse; whether any of the parents used it as a tax deduction, as has been said in many reports, will all come out after the IRS does its thing.

As I said earlier, it is up to the IRS to investigate.

[JJsMom]

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@sidsmom wrote:

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@JJsMom 

This case is not about school cheating.

It’s about Tax Evasion.

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Yes, there's that, but it's about cheating too. Have they been formally charged with tax evasion? So far I know they've been charged with conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest-services mail fraud.

I found this in an article explaining it (link below):

According to complaints filed in courts across the U.S. this week, the now-indicted parents “conspired (1) to bribe college entrance exam administrators to facilitate cheating on college entrance exams; (2) to bribe varsity coaches and administrators at elite universities to designate certain applicants as recruited athletes or as other favored candidates, thereby facilitating the applicants’ admission to those universities; and (3) to use the façade of a charitable organization to conceal the nature and source of the bribe payments.” 

http://www.thefashionlaw.com/home/rich-kids-ruthless-parents-and-a-controversial-honest-services-cha...

[JJsMom]

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@Cakers3 wrote:

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@Johnnyeager wrote:

The case is not about tax evasion.  The case is primarily about Honest Services Mail Fraud and Mail Fraud under the Federal Statute Title 18, United States Code, Section 1349..  It involves using a scheme, artifice and device to deprive someone else of an intangible honest service.

In this case, the parents stole the opportunity for admission from otherwise qualified students.

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@Johnnyeager   They did defraud the IRS.  Their payments were made to a phony charity and deducted as such on their tax returns.  Singer set up the Key Worldwide Foundation as a non-profit charity-which was used to launder that money.

Those who paid to that "Foundation" and then deducted the $$ as a charitable donation will owe taxes and penalties.

Since they knew that the "Foundation" was set up to hide the scam, they are also guilty of tax evasion since that portion of their income was never really used as a donation.

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I think JohnnyEager is saying that is not what the formal charges have been for.

[Johnnyeager]

The charges against the mastermind, Rick Singer, to which he has plead guilty are much more severe and encompass the fake charity:  Racketeering conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy, tax fraud conspiracy with conspiracy to defraud the United States and obstruction of justice.

[reiki604]

It really amazes ame although I don’t know why, that people are so cynical and hardhearted that they have no forgiveness in their hearts

[Cakers3]

What a guy.  No wonder he's singing like a canary, as they say.

[Cakers3]

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@reiki604 wrote:
It really amazes ame although I don’t know why, that people are so cynical and hardhearted that they have no forgiveness in their hearts

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@reiki604   Speaking only for myself, I don't see what forgiving them has to do with anything.

One can forgive and still expect justice to be served.

I agree, though, that some of the comments have been a scooch over the top.

[suzyQ3]

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@Cakers3 wrote:

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@reiki604 wrote:
It really amazes ame although I don’t know why, that people are so cynical and hardhearted that they have no forgiveness in their hearts

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@reiki604   Speaking only for myself, I don't see what forgiving them has to do with anything.

One can forgive and still expect justice to be served.

I agree, though, that some of the comments have been a scooch over the top.

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@Cakers3& @reiki604 , if by "scooch," you mean occasionaly creepy and downright bloodthirsty, I agree.