Tuesday, February 10, 2009

DOJ Tax Appellate Brief in Snipes Case

The Government has filed its appellate brief in the Snipes case. You will remember that Wesley Snipes was acquitted of a Klein conspiracy (how exactly do you get acquitted of a Klein conspiracy?) and false claims, but was convicted of the ho-hum offense of failure to file tax returns for multiple (3) years. Failure to file is a misdemeanor with a maximum 1 year sentence per count / year. The district judge sentenced him to the maximum of 3 years, stacking each of the 3 years of conviction. Snipes did not appreciate the conviction or the sentence. He appealed. The Government has filed its responsive brief, including raising its own protective issue on appeal that the Judge should have imposed the sophisticated means enhancement (how exactly do you avoid sophisticated means in any tax crime of any complexity other than skimming cash receipts and keepting them in the attic?). At any rate, here is the Government brief for what it is worth.

Please note that the parentheticals are a bit hyperbolic

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