This scandal involved wealthy families pulling strings and making outsized donations to help get their children into high-level colleges and universities nationwide.
The First Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston ruled that the convictions against Gamal Aziz would be overturned. The court also ruled that all tax convictions against John Wilson would be overturned. Both men got caught up in the “Varsity Blues” trials and had multiple convictions against themselves.
Many parents contacted consultant Rick Singer to use his skills to help get their children into top colleges and universities nationwide. Singer used bribes and false athletic accomplishments to help get the children of wealthy parents into the top schools they wanted to get them into.
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Aziz was convicted and sentenced to a 12-month prison sentence. Wilson was sentenced to 15 months in prison. However, this higher court overturned both of their convictions, and neither will have to serve those sentences as a result, according to Reuters.
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The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts spoke with the Daily Caller News Foundation and said: “Our office is reviewing the opinion issued by the First Circuit Court of Appeals and assessing next steps.”
May 13, 2023
Wilson was accused of paying $220,000 to help his son have a better chance of getting into the University of Southern California (USC) in 2014. He was also accused of paying $1 million to both Harvard and Stanford Universities to get his daughters into those schools in 2018. Reuters reports that Aziz was accused of trying to pay $300,000 to get his son into USC as a basketball recruit.
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The decision by the higher court reads in part: “Nothing in this opinion should be taken as approval of the defendants’ conduct in seeking college admission for their children.”
Reuters said the “Varsity Blues” scandal ended with more than 50 guilty pleas from high-profile figures, including actresses Lori Loughlin and Felicity Huffman.
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Jovan Vavic, former USC water polo coach, was also convicted in 2022 of fraud and conspiracy. Still, he received a new trial after it was determined that the prosecutor made an error during closing arguments.
Singer was sentenced to three and a half years in prison in January. The Daily Mail reports that he took over $25 million from clients and paid more than $7 million in bribes.
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