Fairbanks businessman pleads not guilty to tax evasion charge
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Roger Lee Shoffstall, 59, is set to go to trial in December on a single count of tax evasion. He told Magistrate Judge Scott Oravec that he intends to represent himself.
Shoffstall owns Summit Telephone and Telegraph Company of Alaska, which provides rural telephone service north of Fairbanks in areas like Chatanika, Haystack Mountain and Cleary Summit. According to court documents, Shoffstall didn’t pay about $133,000 in taxes, interest and penalties from 1996 to 2003.
In a brief statement before entering his plea, Shoffstall said he was contesting the validity of the charge against him, as well as the ability of the court to try it.
He said that, if he is forced to proceed, that “I want the record to show I’m doing so under protest.”
Court documents accuse Shoffstall of failing to file federal tax returns since 1996, while mailing the Internal Revenue Service “frivolous anti-tax arguments, submitting most of these after he was advised by IRS and his own accountants that his arguments were groundless.”
He also is accused of submitting a false tax-withholding form, preventing the IRS from garnishing his wages, and failing to comply with summonses to provide payroll and personnel records. During that time, prosecutors say he used money orders and maintained minimal bank account balances to hinder IRS collection efforts.
Oravec questioned Shoffstall about his qualifications to serve as his own attorney but ultimately allowed him to proceed.
Shoffstall said he is a high school graduate but does not have any legal experience aside from studying the Constitution.
Oravec warned him that “you’d be on your own” if he represented himself and said he wouldn’t be able to offer advice during proceedings.
Oravec said he would allow Shoffstall to represent himself but said that decision could be revisited in the future. Shoffstall is scheduled for trial on Dec. 28.
The tax evasion charge carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
This year, 2.5 trillion was given to offshore and foreign banks. Income taxes did not pay for any of what you listed. Even if it did, it is illegal and immoral to steal a man's labor to pay for the desires of a majority, no matter what the cause is.
Can I go to your house, put a gun to your head and say "i want to build a road, give me your money" or "I want to start an unconstitutional war for the profit of bankers and defense contractors so I can get a payoff"? No I can't. So how can I tell a gov't to do it for me? I can't believe americans were brainwashed into thinking it was ok to have a private bank control their money and have a gov't that could steal someone's labor and give it to someone else. It is no coincidence that the IRS was created the same year as the private Federal Reserve.
I suppose you don't utilize any public infrastructure, roads, libraries, don't receive a dividend, and refuse all benefits and services that citizens enjoy? I thought so.
No one should pay taxes to this despicable corporate warfare/welfare fascist gov't. But if you want to, go ahead.
Wonder if this guy watched "America: Freedom to Facism" - you can find the full version for free here, authorized by the director of the movie - http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1656880303867390173#
worth watching if you want to see why some people feel they are in the right to refuse to pay their taxes.