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Girls-Gone-Wild

Joe Francis arriving at the new Madame Royale club in West Hollywood

And here I thought my days of reporting on Joe Francis were over…

It turns out that the Girls Gone Wild founder hasn’t quite put his tax woes behind him. After taking a deal to plead guilty to two misdemeanor counts of filing false tax returns – and escaping additional jail time in the process – Francis has found himself in the hot seat again.

If you believe TMZ, the IRS has liened Francis for nearly $34 million. To clarify, the IRS claims that Francis owes tens of millions of dollars in unpaid taxes. The breakdown is as follows: $17.7 million in 2001, $11.2 million in 2002 and $4.9 million in 2003. I’m not sure how much the penalties are since I haven’t seen the actual liens but those numbers put his net income somewhere close to $100 million for those three years.

I know, I know. Here I’ve blogging tax all this time when clearly, I should be producing porn.

On the plus side, though, I haven’t had to advise TMZ that my accounts have been frozen by the IRS to the tune of $100 million (no, those numbers don’t quite make sense – just reporting as I hear it). Francis has also allegedly reported that he will file for personal bankruptcy on tomorrow.

I’m not sure how this will affect Francis’ plea deal which requires him to resolve his outstanding tax issues. I mean, it is a resolution – but I’m guessing not so much what IRS had in mind. We’ll see.

(Editor’s note: I have since seen a copy of the liens as filed with LA County. As of 11/06/2009, the liens totaled $33,819,088.14)

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Celebrities arrive for Khloe Kardashian and Lamar Odom's wedding

“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.

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Lili Claire Foundation Benefit Dinner & Concert Gala 2008 - Los Angeles, CA

“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.

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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.

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“Girls Gone Wild” Founder Eyes New Counsel

28 January 2009

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 [...]

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NBC Didn’t Want Joe Francis On Air

9 September 2008

I reported earlier that a federal judge had approved Girls Gone Wild founder Joe Francis’ petition to appear on NBC’s The Apprentice while he awaited his trial on tax evasion charges… but that he had decided not to appear on the show after all. It turns out that it wasn’t really his decision to [...]

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“Girls Gone Wild” Founder Gets Judge’s Okay to Star on “Celebrity Apprentice”

5 September 2008

A federal judge has granted Joe Francis’ motion to be allowed to star on Donald Trump’s “Celebrity Apprentice” while awaiting his trial for tax evasion. There’s just one teensy problem… he’s not going to be on “Celebrity Apprentice.”
Francis’ lawyers had made the request some time ago. Since then, Francis has changed his [...]

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Girls Gone Wild Founder Files Civil Suit

22 August 2008

Joe Francis has spent his life duping young girls into flashing their breasts in front of a camera. Now, he’s claiming that he’s the one that’s been duped.
As previously reported, Francis is facing a trial in September on federal charges, including tax evasion. The fed allege that Francis claimed over $20 million [...]

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“Girls Gone Wild” Founder Claims Ignorance – Mmm, Yeah?

25 July 2008

Joe Francis, the rich and troubled founder of Girls Gone Wild, has pleaded not guilty to two counts of federal tax evasion. He claims that he was the victim of a scheme by his accountant to profit from the IRS whistleblower program.
The indictment alleges that Francis claimed over $20 million in phony business expenses [...]

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Court Dockets Gone Wild

2 October 2007

If there’s a Girls Gone Wild 2008 Spring Break Edition, Joe Francis won’t be closely involved. The mega-rich, mega-troubled founder of the Girls Gone Wild empire will likely remain in jail until April 29, since his trial for tax evasion charges has been postponed. The trial was original scheduled to begin today.
He has [...]

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