WASHINGTON —AP- A federal judge on Thursday upheld former District of Columbia Mayor Marion Barry’s probation in a criminal tax case, meaning the longtime politician will avoid the possibility of prison.
Barry, 71, and now on the D.C. Council, pleaded guilty in 2005 to misdemeanor charges for failing to file tax returns from 1999 to 2004. As part of his plea bargain, he agreed to file future federal and local tax returns annually.
But prosecutors accused Barry of missing deadlines for filing federal and D.C. tax returns for 2005. They argued in court filings that Barry “has not acted like a person who has been given the opportunity of probation and should not be treated like one.”
In deciding to uphold Barry’s probation, Magistrate Judge Deborah A. Robinson ruled that prosecutors did not prove that Barry willfully failed to file his returns even if he was aware that he missed the deadline.
Back in 06, Barry was singing a different tune:
“I take full responsibility,” said Mr. Barry, 70. “There’s no excuse and no reasons that anybody could give why anyone would not pay.”
Under a plea agreement with federal prosecutors, Mr. Barry also acknowledged failing to file returns in 1999 and from 2001 to 2004.
In case you’re curious where you’ve heard the Judge’s name before, she was the one who dismissed the case against Iran for the Khobar Towers attack. Gee… something of a pattern, brewing, here.
