Olivia Jade seen out in public for the first time following college admissions scandal
Olivia Jade Giannulli has been pictured out in public for the first time following news of her parents' involvement in the $25 million college admissions cheating scandal.
The teen vlogger - who has lost endorsement deals with the likes of Sephora, TRESemmé, and Estée Lauder - was spotted with her sister, Isabella Rose, driving through Santa Monica in a Mercedes-Benz.
According to a source at US Weekly, Olivia Jade has temporarily cut off communication with her parents, Lori Loughlin and Mossimo Giannulli, ahead of their court date on the 3rd of April.
"Olivia has been staying with her boyfriend [Jackson Guthy] in Malibu," the insider told the publication. "She’s not talking to her parents right now. Olivia hasn’t been out with friends. She is completely in hiding right now."
The source went onto allege that Olivia is posting to Instagram, but only for her inner circle. "Olivia is posting private Stories on her Instagram, using the only-close-friends option, to share her days on social media with her close circle."
Olivia is reportedly even more upset because school wasn't a priority for her in the first place. "She has been passionate about her career and wanted to work and was doing well, but that wasn't enough. Her parents said she would have to juggle college and her career. Now she's devastated because everything she built imploded before her eyes. She feels they ruined everything."
And according to another source, while Olivia is still "very upset" at her parents, her friends have been imploring her to forgive Lori and Mossimo. "A lot of Olivia’s friends have been telling her not to be mad at her parents since they were just trying to do the best they could for her, but she doesn’t listen. Olivia feels she is the victim," the insider stated.
Per, E! Entertainment, Olivia's parents were also photographed for the first time on Friday while they were visiting friends in neighbouring Orange County.
Olivia and Isabella Rose have not returned to USC even though classes have begun. According to a source at People, they're currently "living in the moment" and will take things as they come.
Earlier this month, news broke that around 40 people - including Olivia Jade's parents, and actress Felicity Huffman - had been indicted for enlisting the help of an illegal college-preparatory programme to get their children into elite private universities.
Good Morning America has reported that documents show that Lori and her husband reportedly "agreed to pay bribes totalling $500,000 in exchange for having their two daughters designated as recruits to the USC crew team — despite the fact that they did not participate in crew — thereby facilitating their admission to USC."
Following the allegations, USC released the following statement:
"We are aware of the ongoing wide-ranging criminal investigation involving universities nationwide, including USC. USC has not been accused of any wrongdoing and will continue to cooperate fully with the government’s investigation. We understand that the government believes that illegal activity was carried out by individuals who went to great lengths to conceal their actions from the university. USC is conducting an internal investigation and will take employment actions as appropriate. USC is in the process of identifying any funds received by the university in connection with this alleged scheme. Additionally, the university is reviewing its admissions processes broadly to ensure that such actions do not occur going forward."