Lori Loughlin is “struggling” in prison and “misses her family and her comfortable life,” a source tells In Touch exclusively.

“Lori is trying to keep her head low and just get through this ordeal,” the insider divulges of the Fuller House alum, who reported to California FCI Dublin on October 30. Although “she’s been able to make calls and send emails, all monitored … every second feels like a lifetime in there.”

The Hallmark actress, 56, and her husband, Mossimo Giannulliadmitted to paying $500,000 to get their daughters Isabella Giannulli, 22, and Olivia Jade Giannulli, 21, accepted into the University of Southern California as members of the crew team, despite the fact the girls never participated in the sport. In the sentencing memo, prosecutors argued Giannulli, 57, was “the more active participant in the scheme,” while Loughlin “took a less active role, but was nonetheless fully complicit.” 

During her virtual sentencing hearing on August 21, Loughlin was required by a judge to report to prison by November 19. For her involvement in the bribery scheme dubbed “Operation Varsity Blues” by prosecutors, she was also sentenced to two years of supervised release and 100 hours of community service. In addition, the New York native was ordered to pay a $150,000 fine.

Who Is Lori Loughlin's Husband
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While speaking to the judge, Loughlin apologized for her actions. “I ignored my intuition and allowed myself to be swayed from my moral compass,” the mother of two said during the sentencing. “I thought I was acting out of love for my children [Isabella and Olivia Jade], but in reality, it only underlined and diminished my daughters’ abilities and accomplishments. More broadly and more importantly, I now understand that my decision helped exacerbate existing inequalities in society generally and the higher education system more specifically.”

A separate source told In Touch that before turning herself in to authorities, the When Calls the Heart star “drove from the safety of her Hidden Hills home to the prison and reminisced of past family holidays and neighborhood get-togethers, but it only made it worse for her,” the insider said. “Lori is living a real-life nightmare.”

“Lori is hating life inside prison,” the first source noted. “Her first days there were dreadful.”

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