103.9 FM WDKX
Rochester, NY
Your #1 Radio for R&B
On air:
Afternoon Drive with
Atu
Listen Online
103.9 WDKX Live Stream
REQUEST A SONG!
Request A Song
The defense in the tax fraud and conspiracy trial of Wesley Snipes rested Monday without any of their announced celebrity witnesses taking the stand.
"We chose not to call witnesses because there was no need to. The government prosecutors have put on a case that simply does not come close to meeting the standard of its burden of proof," Snipes' attorney Daniel Meachum said in a statement.
Lawyers for Snipes were expected to call such stars as Sylvester Stallone, Muhammad Ali, Spike Lee and Tom Brokaw. All were former clients of the New York-based Starr and Co., which handled Snipes' taxes before his co-defendants allegedly persuaded him not to file.
"It was obvious after we went over the evidence the government presented that we could move on to closing arguments immediately and get a just acquittal for Wesley on all counts listed in the indictment," Meachum said.
Snipes, Eddie Ray Kahn and Douglas P. Rosile were named in an eight-count indictment for tax fraud and conspiracy, while the actor faces six additional charges of willful failure to file a tax return from 1999 to 2004.
The "Blade" star faces up to 16 years in prison, while Kahn and Rosile could get 10. Closing arguments are scheduled to begin today.
