BOSTON – Devin Sloane, a Los Angles business executive, was sentenced Tuesday to four months in prison for paying $250,000 to get his son accepted into the University of Southern California as a fake water polo recruit.

He is the second parent to be sentenced in Boston federal court in the nation's college admissions scandal after actress Felicity Huffman received 14 days in prison this month.

U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani also sentenced Sloane to two years of supervised release, 500 hours of community service and a $95,000 fine.

"Just because you’re a good person doesn’t mean you don’t commit a crime when you do those things," Talwani said. “I come back to the action you took in bribing a college official. Bribing a college official is a serious crime. You are not a repeat player, but what you did involved your child."

Sloane, 53, is the founder and CEO of waterTALENT, a water treatment company. The judge ordered him to report to prison Dec. 3.

Sloane and his team of attorneys declined to comment leaving the courthouse.

The longer prison term for Sloane compared to Huffman means parents who took part in the recruitment plot rather than the testing scam could be in line for tougher sentences. Parents made larger payments to Rick Singer, the admissions scheme's mastermind, to participate in the recruitment plot, which guaranteed a seat at a college or university.

Federal prosecutors had recommended that Sloane receive one year and a day in prison in addition to a $75,000 fine and 12 months of supervised release. Sloane's lawyers said he should be sentenced to 2,000 hours of community service instead of prison and proposed he launch and oversee a Special Olympics initiative at independent schools.

The judge rejected that idea, noting that Sloane has an exemplary record of community service. "I think those are very good characteristics," she said. "But I don’t understand how it’s punitive."

"I don’t think that independent school children is the focus of this case," Talwani said when Sloane's lead attorney, Nathan Hochman, suggested the proposal could be a way to help students harmed in the college admission case. "That’s about as tone-deaf as I’ve heard."

More:What Felicity Huffman's prison sentence means for other parents in college admissions scandal

'Are parents doing this for their children or their own status?'

In a deal with prosecutors, Sloane pleaded guilty in May to conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest services mail fraud.

Sloane choked up addressing the judge Tuesday and apologized to his family and the judge. “There are no words to justify my behavior," he said, adding that he takes "complete responsibility" for his actions.

"Some people see this as a case of privilege and arrogance. In my heart and soul, I wanted what was best for my son. I now realize this was the antitheses of that."

But Talwani pushed back, making a statement about the entire admissions scandal.

“I find that’s at issue in all of these cases. It’s not basic care-taking for your child. It’s not getting your child food or clothing. It’s not even getting your child an education. It’s getting your child into a college that you call ‘exclusive.’”

"Are they doing this for their children or their own status?”

Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric Rosen argued Sloane’s conduct was “far more egregious” than Huffman’s, noting he paid “17 times the bribe amount” to Singer. Rosen argued Sloane did not accept responsibility like Huffman did.

“Huffman has owned her criminal activity, while the defendant attacked the victim and blamed others,” Rosen said.

He argued Sloane's proposal for significant community service would not be available to the poor and middle class.

“Make no mistake, he is using his wealth to attempt to buy his way out of jail,” Rosen said. “Prison is necessary here as a great leveler between rich and poor, and that’s why the defendant is doing everything possible here to avoid it.”

Singer's influence not relevant, judge says

According to prosecutors, Sloane paid $200,000 to Singer's sham nonprofit group, the Key Worldwide Foundation, and $50,000 to USC Women's Athletics through Donna Heinel, a former senior associate athletic director at USC, who has pleaded not guilty to charges.

The payments came in 2017 and 2018 after Sloane's son was fraudulently admitted to USC as an internationally accomplished water polo recruit – which he was not.

Hochman told the judge Sloane was a "good man who made a mistake" and that 2,000 hours of community service would be unprecedented, making it an appropriate punishment instead of prison.

But Talwani interjected at several moments to disagree with his defense, including when Hochman disputed that Sloane knew Heinel received bribe money. He said his client did not know what Singer did with the money.

“Your client didn’t know how the messy details were being worked out," Talwani said. "But he understood the money was being used to bribe a USC official."

Hochman painted Singer as a "world-class scheme and manipulator" and suggested that Sloane would not have committed the crime if not for Singer. That also drew sharp disagreement from the judge.

"Why is that the question?" Talwani said, noting that she has defendants come before her court regularly who have been offered a “financial route” to sell drugs or commit other crimes. “Why does it matter that somebody invited him?”

Third parent to be sentenced Thursday

Fifty-two defendants, including 35 parents, were charged with crimes in the nation's "Varsity Blues" college admissions scheme. Twenty-three defendants pleaded guilty to felonies; the remaining pleaded not guilty.

The government has pushed for longer prison terms for parents, such as Sloane, who made among the largest payments in the scheme. In contrast, Huffman paid $15,000 to have someone correct answers on the SAT exam for her oldest daughter. Prosecutors sought one month of prison for Huffman.

More:Felicity Huffman sentenced: 2 weeks in prison, $30,000 fine for college admissions scandal

A ruling earlier this month from Talwani on which federal sentencing guidelines to use might have led to a lighter prison term than prosecutors had sought for Sloane. The judge decided the federal fraud statute should set the base level for sentences of parents in the admissions case. The government requested the tougher commercial bribery statue to apply.

More:Felicity Huffman is just the beginning: Who's pleaded guilty in the college admissions scandal – and who's still fighting

The college admissions case continues Thursday in Boston federal court when Stephen Semprevivo, a former executive at Cydcor, is scheduled to be sentenced. Semprevivo admitted paying $400,000 for his son to be admitted into Georgetown University as a fake tennis recruit. Semprevivo's legal team watched Sloane's hearing from inside the courtroom.

Reach Joey Garrison on Twitter @joeygarrison.