The jury has finally reached a verdict in the Helio Castroneves tax evasion case. There were no scorecards but Castroneves still came out a winner: a federal jury acquitted Castroneves on six counts of tax evasion but hung on one count of conspiracy following a seven week trial and six days of deliberation. Chances are that prosecutors will not pursue the conspiracy charge.
The jury also acquitted Katiucia Castroneves, who was Castroneves’ sister and business manager, on tax evasion counts but hung on the count of conspiracy.
Castroneves’ attorney, Alan Miller, was found not guilty on all three counts of tax evasion and one count of conspiracy.
Castroneves reacted by thanking his fans and saying, “Instead of going to Disneyland, I want to go to Long Beach to race. I’m going back to racing.” He is scheduled to race at this weekend’s Toyota Grand Prix of Long Beach.
So there. I managed to call one of these correctly… That crazy Wesley Snipes verdict through me for a loop.
A federal jury has reached a partial verdict in the Helio Castroneves tax evasion trial but Federal Judge Donald Graham isn’t saying much more than that. The jury has reached a decision on two charges but appears to be hung on the four other tax evasion counts and one conspiracy count. The Judge has asked the jury to try again.
The jury reached a similar “partial verdict” against Castroneves’ sister and business manager, Katuicia Castroneves. They have a full verdict against Castroneves’ attorney Alan Miller.
I’m terrible at guessing verdicts (though remarkably adept at guessing the scores at Castroneves’ old haunt, Dancing With the Stars). My guess is that the full verdict against the attorney means “not guilty” verdicts all around so far. I think they’re hung on a possible “guilty” for one or more of the counts against Castroneves and his sister because they think he did something wrong but can’t figure out what exactly. But again, just a guess. Maybe we’ll know for sure in a few days.
Oh, what would Biggie think? His former protege, Lil’ Kim (real name: Kimberly Denise Jones), has been trying to reinvent herself following a stint in federal prison in 2005. Kim was found guilty of conspiracy and perjury for lying to a grand jury about a 2001 shooting outside the Hot 97 studios in Manhattan and served less than a year in a Philadelphia prison.
Kim claimed to have written over 200 songs while in prison. Once released, she started working on other projects, including more acting gigs and now, a turn on the very popular Dancing with the Stars. Paired with the talented (and not so bad on the eye) Derek Hough, she won rave reviews from the judges last week. She hopes to cha cha her way to the title, mirror ball trophy and perhaps a little extra cash… As it turns out, the rapper owed nearly $1 million in state and federal tax liens in California, New York and New Jersey. The liens were a result of issues with Kim’s tax filings in 2004.
Since that time, Kim has been working to pay down the debt, according to her spokesperson, but still owes a considerable amount. Maybe this will be the year she “Get Money.”
Helio Castroneves will face the music – again – in March. Only, he won’t be able to tango his way out of this one quite so easily.
The Indy 500 race car driver and winner of the 5th season of Dancing with the Stars (along with fan favorite Julianne Hough) found out this week that his federal court trial will begin on March 2. Castroneves is facing one count of tax conspiracy and six counts of tax evasion with respect to income that he allegedly hid in offshore accounts in order to escape taxation.
The two-time Indy 500 winner entered a not guilty plea last month. If convicted, Castroneves faces stiff penalties and jail time.
