Define 'conspiracy,' Snipes jurors ask

The jury in the actor's tax evasion trial is sent home early after asking for a clarification.

By KEVIN GRAHAM, Times Staff Writer
Published January 31, 2008

OCALA - Jury deliberations in the tax evasion trial of actor Wesley Snipes ended early on Wednesday after jurors signaled a roadblock when they sent a note to the judge.

"Further clarify the definition of 'conspiracy' as contained in our instructions," Senior U.S. District Judge William Terrell Hodges said the note read.

Instead of calling attorneys into the courtroom to address the question and respond, Hodges told jurors to end their deliberations for the day and go home. He'd respond to them when they return today at 9 a.m., the judge said.

Federal prosecutors have charged Snipes, 45, and two co-defendants with conspiracy to defraud the Internal Revenue Service. The U.S. Attorney's Office accused Snipes of filing false tax return claims for 1996 and 1997 asking for refunds totaling $11.4-million. They said he conspired with Eddie Ray Kahn, a Lake County resident whom Snipes hired as a tax consultant, and Douglas Rosile, a Venice accountant who worked for Kahn.

Kahn ran American Rights Litigators, described by prosecutors as a firm that tried to "thwart" the IRS process. Kahn and many of his clients, which included Snipes, challenged the IRS' authority to tax them. They protested by citing Internal Revenue Code Section 861, which some believe prohibits the IRS from taxing Americans on income earned in the United States. Courts have rejected the theory.

Rosile worked part time for American Rights Litigators and prepared one of Snipes' tax returns that the IRS said was fraudulent.

After the jury left for the day, Hodges called the attorneys into his courtroom to reveal the jurors' question. With none of the defendants present, Hodges asked the attorneys to think about how he should respond. He planned to meet with them at 8:30 a.m. today for suggestions before deciding what to say to the jury.

"This is a critical stage in the proceeding, and the presence of the defendant is necessary," Hodges said.

Until sending the note at 4:30 p.m., jurors worked throughout the day without a peep.

Jurors heard closing arguments in the case on Tuesday. They spent about six hours discussing the evidence during the first full days of deliberations, taking a lunch break just before noon and an afternoon break, much like Hodges allowed during the course of the trial.

David Wilson, Rosile's attorney, said none of the lawyers expected a verdict on the first day of deliberations because of the thousands of pages of evidence in the case.

"If they go through all the documents, it's going to take a few days," Wilson said. "That doesn't mean anything really besides the fact that the jury is doing their job."

Wilson said he wouldn't begin to worry until four or five days passed without a verdict. If that happens, he said, it could mean the jurors are stuck on an issue.

Besides the conspiracy and filing a false claim charges, the October 2006 indictment charges Snipes with six counts of failure to file income tax returns from 1999 to 2004. If convicted on all the charges, he faces a maximum of 16 years in federal prison.

[Last modified January 31, 2008, 07:12:15]