The tax man gets their man

**normanvin** · April 25th, 2008, 03:55 PM

OCALA, Fla. — A federal judge on Thursday sentenced the actor Wesley Snipes to three years in prison for willfully failing to file tax returns.

Mr. Snipes, who was convicted in February, received one year for each count, to be served consecutively, and an additional year of probation. The sentence was handed down by Judge William Terrell Hodges of Federal District Court.

Mr. Snipes, who apologized for his actions before the sentence was announced, showed no immediate reaction to the verdict.

Judge Hodges allowed Mr. Snipes and a co-defendant, Douglas Rosile, to remain free on bond until they were summoned by either the United States Marshals Service or the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

The sentencing came at the end of a daylong hearing in which lawyers for Mr. Snipes argued for leniency while federal prosecutors sought the maximum penalty possible.

The case was the most prominent tax prosecution since the billionaire hotelier Leona Helmsley was convicted of tax fraud in 1989. Mr. Snipes, who has built a worldwide following acting in films like the “Blade” vampire trilogy, must pay up to $17 million in back taxes plus penalties and interest.

In a prepared statement, Mr. Snipes said: “I’m very sorry for my mistakes. I acknowledge that I have failed myself and others.” But in the statement, which ran to nearly 10 minutes, Mr. Snipes never mentioned the words “tax” or “taxes.”

“He never stated he didn’t pay his taxes or show any remorse for it,” said Robert O’Neill, the acting United States attorney for the Middle District of Florida, the lead prosecutor on the case.

Mr. Snipes even tried to make a down payment on his taxes before sentencing; his legal team offered Judge Hodges three checks totaling $5 million.

Judge Hodges refused the checks, saying he did not have the authority to accept them. Prosecutors also declined to accept the checks. An Internal Revenue Service employee eventually accepted the checks on behalf of the Treasury Department.

Mr. Snipes’s legal team also questioned the validity of federal sentencing guidelines. At one point, one of his lawyers, Carmen Hernandez, described herself as “an expert on sentencing.”

Judge Hodges replied, “If I may be so bold, I’ve also had some experience with that.”
I guess Snipes will need to make a few more movies.

A jury found Mr. Snipes guilty on Feb. 1 of three misdemeanor counts of willfully failing to file tax returns, but acquitted him of felony conspiracy and tax fraud charges and three additional counts of failure to file.

The jury also convicted two co-defendants, Eddie Ray Kahn and Mr. Rosile, on felony charges.

Mr. Snipes was a member of American Rights Litigators, an organization founded by Mr. Kahn. Prosecutors have described that organization and its successor company, Guiding Light of God Ministries, as illegal tax-evasion schemes.

Mr. Rosile, a certified public accountant, prepared some tax returns, including Mr. Snipes’s, for the organization.

Judge Hodges sentenced Mr. Kahn to 10 years and Mr. Rosile to four and a half years.

Mr. Kahn, who represented himself throughout the trial and has consistently refused to recognize Judge Hodges’s authority, was defiant to the end.

“For the record, your honor, I don’t accept that,” Mr. Kahn said.

The judge responded, “You may not accept it, Mr. Kahn, but you will serve it.”

Mr. Rosile declined to comment after the sentencing. His lawyer, David Wilson, however, said the sentence was fair.

A member of Mr. Snipes’s legal team said they would appeal. “We were hoping for a complete acquittal,” the lawyer, Linda Moreno, said. “I have faith in the process, and I have faith in the jury system. We will appeal.”
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**sluggie24** · April 25th, 2008, 04:09 PM

Don't forget..........that's how they got Cappone...........

**KeithPA** · April 25th, 2008, 04:11 PM

I don't get why he came back and surrendered. With the kinda money he had I'd stay far away from this country.

**atavarius** · April 25th, 2008, 04:13 PM

Blade 3 alone should have gotten him life without parole.

**OneLungMcClung** · April 25th, 2008, 04:41 PM

This will be the best thing that has happened to his career in a long time. He'll be a hot commodity when he gets outta the box.

**Garpman** · April 25th, 2008, 06:10 PM

While I don't like to get taxed to death, the argument that the income tax is unconstitutional doesn't hold much water.

I have seen that propaganda film "America: Freedom to Fascism" and while it gives a nice presentation, I'm not sure if it holds any water with research, and I have tried to do some to see if any of the vids claims were true.

It is very difficult to find any information regarding the subject, and admittedly, I didn't put forth every waking moment into it. All I found in the USC, accompanied with footnotes was that, while an income tax would have been unconstitutional because it is a direct tax, the 16th Amendment nullified that clause.

Then the video goes on to say that the 16th Amendment was not properly ratified by all the States, all the cursory research that I've done says otherwise.

Face it, if a millionaire celebrity like Wesley Snipes (no matter how bad Blade: Trinity sucked) can't get away from paying the man, how can we, as little people expect to do so?

Until, we find the real answer, and judges with enough balls to enforce it (if there is one), it looks like taxes will remain alongside its friend and fellow constant, death, for a long time.

And yes, that is how they got Capone. Just goes to show, you can be the head of a major criminal organization responsible for countless deaths and suffering, and be smart enough to get away with it all. But god forbid, if you don't pay the man his due, you are done sir done !