The conviction of Donald Stanley Lavigne on seven counts of knowingly and fraudulently submitting false revenue tax returns and three counts of different false statements referring to chapter was considerably curious. The revenue tax problem was omitting 1099-MISC revenue from being an insurance coverage dealer. The entire revenue concerned averaged simply over $50,000 per 12 months for the years 2013 to 2018. Given the very restricted assets of IRS CI it struck me as small beans. Mr. Lavigne going professional se and never doing a plea deal will not be that odd, unwise because it could be. However the curious factor is that if you’ll be that method, why not go along with a jury?

A Man Standing On The Land

Within the opinion Decide David M. Lawson of the US District Courtroom for the Jap District of Michigan remarks that he sees Mr. Lavigne as an informed and clever man who has fallen beneath the affect of pseudolegal theories primarily based on invalid and discredited ideas of legislation and authorities. I can provide you slightly really feel for that from excerpts from the transcript of the arraignment listening to that came about not lengthy after he was arrested:

DEFENDANT LAVIGNE: Oh, are you speaking to me?

THE COURT: I’m. Would you method the lectern?

DEFENDANT LAVIGNE: That is the place for the defendant. I’m a person standing on the land. My flesh lives, my blood flows and I’ve a soul. I am not the defendant and I am not Mr. Lavigne and I’m right here for two:21-cr-20355.

THE CORT: Thanks, sir. Since you’re right here for Case 2:21-cr-20355, would you please stand and method the lectern?

DEFENDANT LAVIGNE: Okay. So I’ll stand however I will not method the lectern. That is the place for the defendant and I’m not the defendant on this matter.

For what it’s price 2:21-cr-20355 is the docket variety of the case. The transcript of the trial is not going to be obtainable on my price range until Could 1, however from Decide Lawson’s abstract issues didn’t get higher.

Mr. Lavigne seems to subscribe to the idea that he has two elements or identities, one which he labels as a “individual” or “company entity,” and the opposite as his “flesh and blood’ type. One spells his title with higher case letters. The opposite provides spurious and meaningless punctuation to his title. Though Mr. Lavigne places particular significance on these various nomenclature types, these are ineffectual in legislation and are meaningless paper masks. They don’t have any drive or which means in legislation, apart from that they point out an intention on Mr. Lavigne’s half to evade his lawful obligations and the authority of the Courtroom and different branches of presidency.

I do should say that I discover the thought of standing there and saying you’re a man on the land with residing flesh, flowing blood and a soul type of poetic. If it was a film it could be a fairly positive signal you have been the great man. In actual life federal court docket, not a lot.

The Supply Of HIs Tax Theories

The “man standing on the land” versus “company entity” was not the premise of Lavigne’s tax resistance. That got here from Peter Hendrickson, creator of Cracking The Code – The Fascinating Reality about Taxation in America (CtC), who maintains the Misplaced Horizons web site. Mr. Hendrickson and I’ve been speaking since 2019 and I’ve been protecting him since 2014.

Mr. Hendrickson confirmed that Mr. Lavigne has attended his conferences and even indicated that he was throwing in feedback throughout this presentation.

I can by no means summarize Mr. Hendrickson to his satisfaction, however you will get his argument by investing an hour of lifespan in that presentation. Primarily the thought is that the revenue tax is far narrower than most of us assume it’s and the CtC educated exclude revenue from their returns that what I name the conventionally tax compliant are misled into together with. Mr. Hendrickson and I proceed to conform to disagree.

Apparently on the identical occasion, Mr. Lavigne testified as to his personal optimistic expertise submitting returns utilizing the CtC strategies.

Herein often is the clarification for IRS CI chasing such small beans.

Cherry Selecting

Within the 2013 version of Federal Tax Crimes (obtainable on SSRN) Jack Townsend notes that although most taxpayers who commit tax crimes by no means get caught, the Authorities manages to find sufficient of them in order that it may cherry choose essentially the most egregious and due to this fact winnable circumstances. The mission of IRS CI will not be like that of a murder squad, which a minimum of as portrayed on TV cannot stand having any unsolved murders. Quite the restricted assets obtainable to prosecute tax crimes are devoted to fostering confidence within the tax system and compliance with the legislation.

Hendrickson’s greatest sensible argument in favor of the validity of his concept is the massive quantity or refunds flowing to CtC educated taxpayers. He finds the reason for that the I supply – restricted IRS assets – preposterous. Decide Lawson famous the CtC connection

In the summertime of 2017, the defendant participated at a gathering that was memorialized in a video posted on YouTube through which he declared he had been submitting tax paperwork as prescribed by the recommendation in Cracking the Code since 2008. The defendant said that when contacted by tax authorities, he “communicated again to the IRS and despatched them away with a spanking.”

Decide Dawson additionally famous:

At that very same assembly, the defendant advocated that “all people on this nation turns into a CTC educated filer and quits sending all their cash to the federal government.” He stated that his goal is that the federal government, which he labels “the beast,” “runs out of cash.” Encouraging others at that gathering to comply with his tax-return-filing practices, the defendant exhorted, “I’m not afraid of the IRS. And anytime they ship me something, I spanked them, and shove it proper again up their rear finish and inform them to get out my face they usually go away.”

Mr. Hendrickson responded to my inquiries in regards to the Lavigne case by noting that though Lavigne’s coronary heart was in the proper place he might need made some errors in how he carried out his filings. He does, nevertheless point out that the CtC connection might have been what provoked IRS curiosity. He wrote:

Total, and regardless of his errors and the truth that his indictment ranges into areas outdoors of his efforts at CtC-educated filings, I believe Don’s a very good man probably chosen for this consideration with the intention to make him into this 12 months’s “scare ’em away from CtC” poster youngster.

Mr. Hendrickson doesn’t help the company/particular person concept that inspired Mr. Lavigne to spend his time in court docket aggravating the judges.

Why Not A Jury ?

My common readers want no introduction to Kent Hovind, however for the remainder he’s an impartial Baptist minister and Younger Earth Creationists whose 2015 trial for tax associated crimes made him a star within the alt proper echo chamber. Nonetheless incarcerated from his 2006 conviction, he used a extra standard lawyer. Eleven of the jurors thought he was responsible on all counts, however one didn’t, so Hovind ended up going free. The holdout was Don Camacho.

I ran my concept by lawyer Peter Goldberger who has represented folks charged with the type of tax resistance Mr. Lavigne engaged in. He responded

I fully agree with you. It’s attainable to current a Cheek protection, if carried out fastidiously, and if the defendant is definitely honest, as mirrored within the circumstantial proof, however not in any other case. And a jury supplies you with 13 probabilities to influence somebody of that, whereas a bench trial supplies just one probability, and never the very best one.

Cheek was a 1991 Supreme Courtroom choice that held {that a} good-faith perception that the defendant was not violating the legislation prevents a discovering that the defendant acted willfully. Mockingly the choice did not do Mr. Cheek any good, nevertheless it might need labored for Mr. Lavigne.

Hovind Replace

I spoke with Kent Hovind just lately about You Tube cancelling his channel. He has additionally been dealing with a important article by Kelly Properly within the Each day Beast. So far as my beat goes, he advised me that he’s nonetheless engaged on having his 2006 conviction overturned. Apparently his loss on the half billion greenback lawsuit has not triggered him to surrender.