Ohio, Racism
Why isn’t this tax evader in jail?I’m no great legal scholar but come on. Prosecutors in the Wesley Snipes tax evasion case are overstepping their bounds to make an example out of the actor.
Snipes was convicted in February on three misdemeanor counts. U.S. District Judge William Terrell Hodges handed down the maximum sentence and said he felt it was important to create a general deterrent against tax defiance…
The judge said prison officials would notify Snipes when to begin serving his sentence. Snipes said he would appeal the verdict but prosecutors vowed to oppose any request to allow him to remain free on bond while the appeal is pending.
Prosecutors said Snipes had earned more than $38 million since 1999 but still had not filed tax returns for the years 1999 through 2007 or paid any taxes prior to Thursday…
They said the notoriety of the case presented a “singular opportunity” to deter tax crimes nationwide.
But what we have here are two separate things. One is Snipes’ crimes — three misdemeanors — of which he is guilty. The other is the government’s desire to discourage us from not paying our taxes. Because Snipes is guilty as charged does not give prosecutors the right to exploit his situation for their own aims. His sentence should be about his punishment for tax evasion, not about a government marketing message.
It’s too bad Snipes is the only famous person to owe the I.R.S. — and his lawyers say he does owe them $400,000. They could have made an example out of someone else, if only there had been someone earlier in a similar situation.
Oh yeah, Willie Nelson is walking around after leaving an original upaid bill of $17 million in back taxes. The I.R.S. worked out a settlement with the red-headed stranger, selling his ranch and taking an interest in one of his albums and other assets. They also agreed to take less, $12.6 million for the nearly $17 million debt. There was never any discussion of prison.
I don’t want to see Willie locked up but I’m really struggling to understand how this is fair. If it doesn’t boil down to being about black and white, then I need someone to explain it to me.
Maybe rapper Foxy Brown could. She was sentenced to one year in jail for a parole violation after having an altercation with a manicurist. While Brown served her sentence, the world watched the spectacle of Paris Hilton, tapped with a mere 45 days for violating parole with repeated drunk driving offenses, cry her way to serving less than half of even that lightweight punishment.
Point taken! I hadn’t thought of it that way, but I suppose prejudice could be a factor in the persecution/prosecution of WEALTHY blacks as well as poor. I mean, why wouldn’t there be prejudice against wealthy blacks as well as poor? Thanks for the eye-opener!
Snipes got the same sentence that anyone would have gotten in the same situation.
He owes more than $20,000,000 in back taxes and hasn’t paid a penny since 1999.
The prosecutors didn’t ask the judge to unfairly punish Snipes. They simply asked that the judge treat Snipes the same as the rest of us mere mortals.
Willie Nelson didn’t go to prison because he paid his taxes in full before they could criminally indict him. Too bad Snipes didn’t do the same.
Carmella, you’re not paying attention. The prosecutors said “the notoriety of the case presented a ’singular opportunity’ to deter tax crimes nationwide.” Treating Snipes like a “mere mortal” or like “anyone in the same situation” was never an option. And Willie paid his taxes only after the IRS seized his property and worked out a settlement to accept less than he owed. Even at that, there was never any consideration of jail time. Re-read the story and see if you get it this time.
Thanks for emphasizing the point that sentences should NOT be about sending a message to others. That’s not justice.
You just don’t understand the applicable racial double standard!
Willie=white, /: free
Wesley=black /: in jail
I agree with you about racism having something to do with the sentence, but I fault your Willie Nelson analogy. I could be wrong (it’s been a few years), but I seem to remember that Willie was done in by his financial manager, who was taking his money but never paying his taxes. True, Willie signed the returns and was ultimately responsible for his own tax bill, as are we all, but he was not the first celebrity to put his trust in a crooked manager. And I don’t think Willie ever declared himself a tax denier as Snipes did. Again, I might be totally wrong, and it still doesn’t alter the obvious racism involved in Snipes’ case.
Actually Charles, once again Willie and Wesley are remarkably similar. Like Wesley, Willie was looking for a way to avoid his tax debt. He invested in shady tax sheltered accounts identified by Price Waterhouse (which he later sued), just as Snipes got very poor advice from professionals who claimed his income wasn’t taxable. The old “If it sounds too good to be true…” maxim could be applied to both men.
Ah, I get it. Willie was putting a layer of deniability between himself and his tax denying! Clever. Thanks for the clarification.
[...] Pensito Review (Trish) – Racism Best Explanation for Wesley Snipes’ Sentence: “I’m no great legal scholar but come on. Prosecutors in the Wesley Snipes tax evasion case are overstepping their bounds to make an example out of the actor.” [...]