Wesley Snipes: GUILTY! Gets 3 Years In Jail

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3 Point Stan

3 Point Stan

POW! Right in the kissah.
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Oof!

Snipes sentenced to 3 years for tax convictions

April 24, 2008
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BY TRAVIS REED Associated Press

OCALA, Fla.---- Wesley Snipes was sentenced to three years in prison on tax charges Thursday, a victory for prosecutors who sought to make an example of the action star by aggressively pursuing the maximum penalty.

Snipes' lawyers had spent much of the day in court offering dozens of letters from family members, friends -- even fellow actors Woody Harrelson and Denzel Washington -- attesting to the good character of the ''Blade'' star and asking for leniency. They argued he should get only probation because his three convictions were all misdemeanors and the actor had no previous criminal record.

But U.S. District Judge William Terrell Hodges said Snipes exhibited a ''history of contempt over a period of time'' for U.S. tax laws, and granted prosecutors the three year sentence they requested -- one year for each of Snipes' convictions of willfully failing to file a tax return.

''In my mind these are serious crimes, albeit misdemeanors,'' Hodges said.

Snipes apologized while reading from a written statement for his ''costly mistakes,'' but never mentioned the word taxes.

''I am an idealistic, naive, passionate, truth-seeking, spiritually motivated artist, unschooled in the science of law and finance,'' Snipes said.

Snipes said his wealth and celebrity attracted ''wolves and jackals like flies are attracted to meat.'' He called himself ''well-intentioned, but miseducated.''

Snipes was the highest-profile criminal tax target in years, and prosecutors called for a heavy sentence to deter others from trying to obstruct the IRS. The government alleged Snipes made at least $13.8 million for the years in question and owed $2.7 million in back taxes.

Snipes was acquitted in February of five additional charges, including felony tax fraud and conspiracy. Snipes' co-defendants, Douglas P. Rosile and Eddie Ray Kahn, were convicted on both those counts. Kahn, who refused to defend himself in court, was sentenced to 10 years, while Rosile received 54 months. Both will serve three years of supervised release. Snipes will serve one year of supervised release.

Snipes and Rosile remain free and will be notified when they are to surrender to authorities.

Kahn was the founder of American Rights Litigators, and a successor group, Guiding Light of God Ministries, that purported to help members legally avoid paying taxes. Rosile, a former accountant who lost his licenses in Ohio and Florida, prepared Snipes' paperwork.

Snipes maintained in a years-long battle with the IRS he did not have to pay taxes, using fringe arguments common to ''tax protesters'' who say the government has no legal right to collect. After joining Kahn's group, the government said Snipes instructed his employees to stop paying their own taxes and sought $11 million in 1996 and 1997 taxes he legally paid.

Prosecutors sought to justify the maximum sentence by raising those and other details from the IRS investigation, as well as a tax loss even for years in which Snipes was acquitted of failing to file a return. Such ''relevant conduct'' is allowed by law for a judge's consideration at sentencing.

Criminal tax prosecutions are relatively rare -- usually the cases are handled in civil court, where the government has a lower burden of proof. Prosecutors said Snipes' case was important to send a message to would-be tax protesters not to test the government.
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Didn't these rich idiots learn from watching what happened to Al Capone? :shake: You can lie, cheat, steal, sell drugs and booze and prostitution... but DO NOT try to screw Uncles Sam out of his take! ROFL You force his hand from the cookie jar, he'll just eventually stick BOTH hands in... and then take the cookie jar as well!
 
After starting his career in some good films, like New Jack City, The Waterdance & Jungle Fever, Wesley's been guilty of starring in $hitty movies for years.
 
Mark_Henderson said:
After starting his career in some good films, like New Jack City, The Waterdance & Jungle Fever, Wesley's been guilty of starring in $hitty movies for years.
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alot of actors/actress are guilty of this
 
I guess :)shrug: ) when he gets out of jail..he will have trained with the "California Penial League???" Just like his buddy from Major League!! I hope he bought enough gloves to steal...Ohh I mean soap :whip:
 
MrsPats4ever said:
Ohh I mean soap :whip:
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facing.jpg
 
One of my favorite actors, but have no sympathy for this. With the money he has there is no reason at all for this crap.
 
Who know the only way a celebrity can go to jail now is to not pay uncle sam. commit a horrible crime like mike vick did. DUI, drugs and hitting and spitting on cops just gives you a slap on the wrist.
 
Mark_Henderson said:
After starting his career in some good films, like New Jack City, The Waterdance & Jungle Fever, Wesley's been guilty of starring in $hitty movies for years.
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If i was an actor, i would act in every damn film someone paid me too.
 
You really don't mess with the IRS by not paying taxes. My dad ended up going to jail for six months for tax evasion. I was four years old at the time but didn't find out about it until I was 13 years old. My mom told me that my dad was "in Europe on business" at the time. I even sent him letters asking him how Europe was at the time. I guess those letters were really going to a jail cell. Weird to look back on it now.
 
demerit said:
You really don't mess with the IRS by not paying taxes. My dad ended up going to jail for six months for tax evasion. I was four years old at the time but didn't find out about it until I was 13 years old. My mom told me that my dad was "in Europe on business" at the time. I even sent him letters asking him how Europe was at the time. I guess those letters were really going to a jail cell. Weird to look back on it now.
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Funny how congress never has to pay the income tax.
 
I've never actually asked my dad about it as I haven't seen him in a long time, but according to my mom, my dad was actually proud of the fact that it cost the US government more to prosecute him than what he actually owed. He's an accountant and actually determined the cost of his own investigation and what had to be paid to witnesses and such.
 
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