Snipes Acquitted of Tax Fraud

DuH2 · #1 (**permalink**) 02-01-2008, 05:54 PM

Quote:

Actor Wesley Snipes Acquitted of Tax Fraud, but Convicted of Failing to File a Tax Return

OCALA, Fla. (AP) -- Action star Wesley Snipes was found not guilty of federal tax-fraud and conspiracy charges Friday, but was convicted on three misdemeanor counts of failing to file a tax return.

Snipes and two co-defendants, a delicensed accountant and a tax protest leader, were indicted in 2006. Snipes faced six additional counts of willful failure to file a tax return from 1999-2004, a period in which he signed two contracts for more than $10 million on sequels in the "Blade" trilogy. He was acquitted on three of those and convicted on the others. He could be sentenced to three years in prison after originally facing a possible 16 years.

Co-defendants Eddie Ray Kahn, the founder of a tax protest group, and Douglas P. Rosile, a delicensed accountant, were convicted by the same jury of tax fraud and conspiracy.

Snipes, who starred in the "Blade" films and "White Men Can't Jump," is among the most famous targets of an IRS criminal investigation, and his prosecution was key for the government. The actor used tax protest arguments long rejected by courts but still continuing to find adherents.

For example, Snipes said the IRS's own code meant no citizen had to pay taxes on income earned in this country, and the agency had no legal authority to collect wages anyway, because it is not a proper government entity.

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080201/snipe...rial.html?.v=1

Good actor and its the IRS

..but he's one lucky man right now.

raytri · #2 (**permalink**) 02-01-2008, 05:55 PM

I'm waiting to see how T-B explains this one.

DuH2 · #3 (**permalink**) 02-01-2008, 05:58 PM

His comments would have hurt him had his lawyers not been able to point out he was safe.

raytri · #4 (**permalink**) 02-01-2008, 06:02 PM

Here's a fuller NYT version:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/30/business/30tax.html

Quote:

Defense lawyers used the words “kooky” “crazy” and “dead wrong” to describe the views of Mr. Snipes, 45, on taxes. But they insisted that he had not broken any laws and should be acquitted of fraud, conspiracy and six counts of failing to pay taxes on more than $58 million of income for the years 1999 through 2004.

Two defense lawyers, Robert E. Barnes and Robert G. Bernhoft, said the position that Mr. Snipes had adopted, and which has been invoked by thousands of others who deny the legitimacy of the tax laws, had no merit. But “no merit does not equal fraud,” said David Wilson, a lawyer for another defendant, Douglas Rosile, a disbarred accountant. Mr. Wilson repeated the point two dozen times in 30 minutes.

Mr. Barnes also argued that Mr. Snipes had not committed a crime because he had told the government his reasoning for not paying taxes. “There was full, open disclosure,” Mr. Barnes said, “no fraud, no deceit.”

While lawyers said Mr. Snipes should have to pay his taxes, interest and penalties, the government should have filed a civil suit against him and not a criminal case

Ouch. His own lawyers described his views as "kooky" and "crazy" and admitted he did, in fact, owe millions of dollars in taxes.

Truth-Bringer · #5 (**permalink**) 02-02-2008, 08:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by raytri

I'm waiting to see how T-B explains this one.

You can see that here (link within a link).

Again, if you don't know the root deception and if you don't decode your Individual Master File via the Freedom of Information Act, then you're going to lose in a criminal case.

The IRS loves to make an example of celebrities to dissuade other people from even considering that deception is involved in the tax laws.

"The overwhelming majority of taxpayers appear to be perfectly willing to face serious adverse action without bothering to make any significant effort to learn what the agency knows about them or how they came to be in that situation. In fact, even subjects of major criminal investigation seldom bother to make such inquiries, apparently being willing to face trial and risk imprisonment without writing a simple letter which could produce information which could literally save their freedom.”

- Marcus Farbenblum, Chief of the Freedom of Information Branch, IRS National Office, from his book, “The I.R.S. and the Freedom of Information and Privacy Act of 1974,” regarding FOIA requests

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