Don't Mess With Taxes

There weren't any tax charges connected with Paris "I want my mommy" Hilton's return to L.A. County jail last week, but we start with something that blog and tax aficionados should find pretty cool.

Former Atlanta Mayor Bill Campbell was impressed by a blogger's critique of his sentence for tax evasion. So impressed, that Campbell called the blogging law professor and asked him to argue his appeal.  

Douglas A. Berman, a law professor at Ohio State University’s Moritz College of Law and author of the blog, Sentencing Law and Policy, agreed. On Friday, June 8, he argued before Atlanta’s 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that Campbell’s conviction and sentence should be overturned.

Campbell was convicted last year on three counts of tax evasion. He was acquitted of more serious federal bribery and racketeering charges. He began serving the 2½-year sentence in a federal minimum-security prison in Miami last August.

In his blog, Berman noted that the judge had based the former mayor’s sentence, in part, on a finding that Campbell had taken bribe money, even though the jury had acquitted Campbell of that charge.

Now Campbell and Berman wait. Obviously they both are hoping that the court will agree with their position. But regardless, it's still pretty cool that blogging led to participation in such a high-profile case.

Senior citizen fraud: William O. Washburn probably won't appeal the 87-month sentence he received last week in a San Diego federal court. He pleaded guilty to to wire fraud and tax evasion charges.

Once his 7-plus years of incarceration is over, Washburn is to serve an additional three years of supervised release.

Oh yeah. He also was ordered to repay the victims of his wire fraud scheme, most of whom were senior citizens. According to court documents, the total amount will be determined within sixty days, but it is expected to be more than $2 million.

The other side of politics and taxes: Finally, this week's rap sheet looks at another way political activity and taxes coincide. Specifically, the Jack Abramoff fallout continues.

Italia Federici, the president of the Council of Republicans for Environmental Advocacy (CREA), on Friday pleaded guilty in Washington, D.C., federal court to one count of income tax evasion and one count of obstructing the U.S. Senate’s investigation into the corruption scandal surrounding the former lobbyist, who is serving an almost six-year sentence.

Under the terms of the plea agreement, Federici faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison, a $250,000 fine and mandatory restitution. Sentencing is scheduled for November.