“Girls Gone Wild” founder Joe Francis feels he finally got a break when a federal judge okayed a deal that Francis struck with prosecutors. Under the agreement, Francis was credited with 301 days already served and sentenced to one year of probation.
The plea deal was struck after Francis learned that a key witness, Francis’ former accountant, had withheld information from his defense team at trial. Francis was originally indicted on tax evasion charges in 2007 stemming from a number of income omissions and false deductions. He pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor counts of filing false tax returns and one count of bribing Nevada jail workers.
“I think we won that one,” Francis said after the hearing.
The former bad boy was polite during the hearing, answering questions as asked. It was quite a turn-around from the belligerent persona he had maintained since the charges were first brought against him in 2007.
After the hearing, he kissed his mother.
Apparently he really does kiss his mother with that mouth.
“Girls Gone Wild” founder Joe Francis has agreed to a plea arrangement that will significantly reduce his outstanding tax liability and keep him out of jail (for a bit – I’m making no promises about what he’ll do next). Francis has agreed to plead guilty to two counts of filing false tax returns and one count of bribing Nevada jail workers.
Francis, who has already spent 301 days in jail, will receive credit for time served. In addition, he will receive a year of supervised release and pay a quarter of a million dollars in restitution. The agreement, which slashed the potential jail sentence for Francis, doesn’t completely put an end to Francis’ tax woes but does require tax issues relating to Francis or his companies from 2002 to 2008 to be handled in civil or administrative arenas.
Francis had been accused of tax evasion relating to his business. Francis’ attorney, Brad D. Brian, has said – and I’m not making this up – that prosecutors “didn’t understand Francis’ business model” and the expense related to the “Girls Gone Wild” brand.
Girls Gone Wild founder Joe Francis continues to make headlines. Francis did not make a scheduled hearing on yesterday as part of his federal tax evasion case.
Francis reportedly claimed that he was sick (*cough*) but some wonder if there might not be more to the story. Francis was scheduled to appear pro se because he lacks legal counsel. After being ditched by The Bernhoft Law Firm, Francis wooed Munger, Tolles & Olson as his new counsel; the latter has allegedly decided not to rep the troubled porn king.
Francis’ case is set to begin next month, and my guess is that US District Judge S. James Otero will not be amused by Francis’ antics. The Judge issued a bench warrant for Francis’ arrest last night and Francis is said to have spent the night at the Metropolitan Detention Center.
If it feels like every time you turn around, big name law firms are turning associates loose, you can’t blame Joe Francis. The “Girls Gone Wild” founder is doing his best to employ nearly every lawyer on the west coast.
In the last couple of years, Francis has used and wooed a number of renown law firms including Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman and Howrey to defend him on a range of criminal charges. Francis is now replacing his current counsel, The Bernhoft Law Firm, who were initially set to defend him against federal tax evasion charges this year.
Rumor has it that Bernhoft originally wanted to up its celebrity profile following their representation of Wesley Snipes on tax evasion charges. [note to Bernhoft: Wesley Snipes? Not really a celebrity. Joe Francis? Definitely not a celebrity. Call me.] But it appeared that the relationship soured and Bernhoft filed a motion to withdraw from the case last month.
Apparently, Francis had some choice words for Bernhoft attorneys as he mulled his choices for replacement counsel. I’m not reprinting them here because Bernhoft is claiming that much of what was reported by the Los Angeles Daily Journal (the source of the quotes) is not true. So, let’s just saying that there’s some gray area about what happened.
What is confirmed, however, is that Francis is considering California based Munger, Tolles & Olson as his new defense counsel for the tax evasion charges. Not that anyone is counting (okay, we are), but Munger would be the 5th law firm to attempt to defend Mr. Francis for… well, being Joe Francis.
But Bernhoft had to see this coming. After all of the other law firms, the signs had to be there: the late nights, the roving eyes, the saying he’d call when he didn’t. He wasn’t ever going to commit to just one law firm. He’s not that kind of guy.
And Munger may think that they’re *the one* but it’s just a matter of time before the sparkle wears off there, too. Hint: if it doesn’t feel like it’s working out, he’s just not that into you.
