Steve Dii
JF-Expert Member
- Jun 25, 2007
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Wesley Snipes has been given 3 years prison sentence for tax offenses:
SteveD.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080424/ap_en_mo/snipes_tax_trial;_ylt=ArLenKXYri8Ebi0Z.cI50sFxFb8CJudge sentences Snipes to 3 years for tax convictions
By TRAVIS REED, Associated Press Writer22 minutes ago
A federal judge has sentenced action star Wesley Snipes to the maximum three-year sentence on tax charges.
Prosecutors had requested three years, one year for each of Snipes' convictions of willfully failing to file a tax return.
Snipes' lawyers offered three dozen letters from family members, friends and even fellow actors Woody Harrelson and Denzel Washington attesting to his good character. They argued he should get only probation, because all three convictions were misdemeanors and the actor had no previous criminal record.
Wesley Snipes
OCALA, Fla. (AP) - Wesley Snipes' attorneys were still arguing for a limited sentence Thursday, hours after the actor's sentencing hearing began on federal tax charges that could land him fines and prison time.
The sentencing in a central Florida court lasted the entire morning without a decision. A jury found him guilty in February of willfully failing to file taxes for three years, in which the government said he owed $2.7 million.
But Snipes' attorneys said in court his tax liability was only $228,000. Even if U.S. District Judge William Terrell Hodges accepts their argument, sentencing enhancements put Snipes within range of the three-year prison term prosecutors want.
Snipes was acquitted of three identical misdemeanors and two felony charges of tax fraud and conspiracy.
The actor's attorneys said the government's sentencing guidelines aren't fair for tax convictions like his. They want him let off with no prison and no fine.
Snipes' co-defendants, who were convicted on the felony fraud and conspiracy charges, will also be sentenced. Eddie Ray Kahn faces up to 10 years behind bars, while Douglas P. Rosile could be jailed five to six years.
SteveD.