The Tooth, The Whole Tooth and Nothing But…

Okay, it’s a really bad pun. But I couldn’t help it.

You see, the latest federal tax evasion trial to make the news involves… a dentist. Yes, not necessarily the profession that you tend to associate with an individual who also has a history with the militia. Let’s face it, dentists have as exciting a reputation as, well, lawyers.

Elaine Brown is a former dentist who currently lives in Plainfield, New Hampshire.  She and her husband, Ed Brown, were found guilty of conspiring to defraud the government, conspiring to conceal large financial transactions and concealing large financial transactions. Elaine Brown was also individually found guilty of fourteen additional felonies including tax evasion and failure to pay employment taxes for the staff of her Lebanon dental practice. Brown failed to report more than $2 million in income to the IRS, filed false tax returns to conceal income and eventually failed to file any tax returns at all. The Browns went to such lengths as paying their mortgage with money orders in an effort to avoid detection by the federal government. The amount owed to the IRS is more than $625,000.

The Browns argued that they were not required to pay taxes. As "tax protestors" they believe that the federal government does not have jurisdiction to tax money that they earn. In fact, rather than argue that the tax debts were the results of a mistake, Ed Brown took the opportunity during his opening statement to argue his own tax policy, claiming "We will once and for all show beyond the shadow of a doubt - not reasonable doubt, beyond the shadow of a doubt - that the federal income tax system is a fraud."

Before the end of the trial, Ed Brown decided not to return to court, charging that the entire procedure was "rigged." Instead, he returned to his hilltop home to prepare for what he vows will be a fight.  His home is something of a fortress with 8-inch-thick concrete walls and has the capacity to function without outside utilities. A bench warrant has been issued for his arrest. He has said on the internet and in radio interviews that he would die before he returned to court. Brown has a history with militia groups including the Constitution Defense Militia, the Constitution Rangers of the Continental Congress of 1777 and the UnAmerican Activities Investigations Committee.

He has stated that he would not leave his home under his own volition to surrender to federal authorities. "Most Americans would cower and cringe and raise their hands and surrender like a good little slave. I won’t. Under no circumstances. I do not tolerate cowardliness, oppression, bulliness, and I certainly don’t tolerate a federal agency that has absolutely zero jurisdiction in my state, never mind in my county, in my town."

Elaine Brown, however, did return to court after her husband’s absence, with the assistance of a public defender. She considered a plea agreement but ultimately rejected it. After trial, Elaine Brown went to live with her son in Worcester, MA, where she is confined to modified home arrest with the assistance of an electronic monitoring bracelet.

Sentencing for the Browns will be held on April 24. Most likely, the Browns will be sentenced to jail time of between three and five years each. Additionally, they will be required to repay the back taxes, as well as interest and penalties.