[MLUG - DISCUSSION] Wesley Snipes Acquitted of 2 Felonies in Tax Case

[Mike Miller <EMAIL:PROTECTED>]

See "news alert" below.  I had no idea that this was going on.  I am a 
little behind on my PBS Newshour viewing, is that my problem?  Anyway, the 
thing is, Snipes had refused to pay federal income tax saying that the 
government did not have a right to tax income.  You can read more at the 
URL below or from links at that page, but I'll tell you based on my quick 
look that I can't understand what Snipes was thinking.  His attorneys 
agree that he is crazy:

   http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/01/30/in-his-words-wesley-snipes-on-not-paying-taxes/

   "Although Mr. Snipes's own lawyers admit that his views are "kooky,"
   "crazy" and "dead wrong," one of them argues that "no merit does not
   equal fraud," according to Mr. Johnston's report today on the jury's
   deliberations:

   http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/30/business/30tax.html

   In one 600-page document, Mr. Snipes said he was legally a
   "nontaxpayer" and the tax laws did not apply to him because he was not
   a resident of the District of Columbia, was not a federal official and
   was not engaged in any trade or business, all common tax denier arguments.

   The lead lawyer among the six representing Mr. Snipes, Robert
   G. Bernhoft of Milwaukee, has been under a federal court order since
   1999 barring him from selling materials that supposedly relieve people
   of the need to pay taxes.

   Mr. Snipes joined the tax denier movement after becoming upset when
   told that his 1999 income tax would be more than $2 million, Carmen
   Baker, his former assistant, testified.

Mike


Breaking News Alert
The New York Times
Friday, February 1, 2008 -- 4:56 PM ET
-----

Snipes Acquitted of 2 Felonies in Tax Case

The actor Wesley Snipes was acquitted of two felonies and three 
misdemeanors in the most prominent tax prosecution since Leona Helmsley, 
the billionaire hotelier, was convicted of tax fraud in 1989. He was 
convicted on three misdemeanor charges of failing to file tax returns or 
to pay taxes and faces up to three years in prison.

Read More:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/01/business/01cnd-tax.html

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