His trial on charges that he’s been willfully trying to interfere with the forfeiture of his properties (which was part of his sentence) started this week. The Pensacola News Journal has an account. Not much has happened yet, and they’re expecting two weeks of proceedings.
The government alleges the men committed mail fraud and conspiracy to commit mail fraud through their filings. Hovind also is charged with contempt of court for violating the injunction, and Hansen is charged with contempt for failing to travel from Nebraska to Pensacola (at the government’s expense) for fingerprinting.
Thomas Keith, Hovind’s attorney, essentially told jurors his client’s current charges were the result of him lawfully disagreeing with the powers that be.
"He has the truest belief that he was wrongfully sentenced and convicted, and he’s been fighting it, lawfully, in every legal way that he thinks he can… It’s not illegal to file motions in court, and that’s what he’s doing."
Hovind doesn’t have the look of a fighter. He was calm and detached Monday, leaning back in his chair as he watched the court proceedings through the thick-rimmed glasses on graying his temples. However, to a certain subset of the populace, Hovind has become a folk hero of sorts for his willingness to rail against the establishment. A young Earth creationist, Hovind’s claim to fame has been attempting to poke holes in popularly-accepted notions such as evolution and an "old Earth."
It came as no surprise that he has been trying to poke holes in the legal process, though his success has been questionable. The grounds for many of Hovind’s legal actions reportedly came from a cellmate in a New Hampshire prison camp whom allegedly Hovind described as a "legal genius."
Well, gosh, at least he’s getting the legal advice he deserves.
But really, he’s getting up there in years, he’s been in prison for about ten years, maybe he should stop screwing around with these jailhouse lawyers and bizarre legal cranks, get some legitimate representation, and show a little acceptance of his punishment just to get out and get home.
This “Better Call Saul” nonsense is not helping himself.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Tiffany Eggers read transcripts of a phone call from Hovind to his daughter in which Hovind reportedly discussed his lis pendes.
"Have you ever taken a step into dog crap and it gets stuck on your feet and it’s really hard to get off?" he reportedly asked. "That’s what a lis pendes is."
Um, that should be “lis pendens”. It’s what he’s charged with doing: he has been filing these notices claiming ownership of his former properties, creating bureaucratic road blocks to their forfeiture. That phone call sounds like a confession: he’s been filing these claims just to create a nuisance.
The government is tasked with proving Hansen and Hovind acted with the knowledge they were committing illegal actions, according to Keith. He said the fact that most of Hovind’s resistance was mounted through public documents and often recounted on Hovind’s blog was evidence the evangelist believed his actions were legal and permissible. Klotz concurred on his client’s behalf..
"There is a mountain of evidence, but I expect you’re not going to find one shred of evidence that Mr. Hansen acted with the intent to defraud anybody, or take anything that didn’t belong to them, or deny the government of the $430,400 it was owed," Klotz said. "He just did what he thought he had to as a trustee."
The trial is expected to continue at the federal courthouse in Pensacola during the next two weeks. Chief District Judge M. Casey Rodgers is presiding.
I also don’t think his popular defenders are helping his case. This guy is at the trial:
Even if the judge is a great big jerk, you don’t bring a colorful sign to the courthouse and taunt the judge. He seems to be all about the obnoxious displays, though: I notice that his Bible wasn’t ostentatious enough for him, so he had to crudely tape on big letters that say “HOLY BIBLE”. That isn’t for his benefit, that’s entirely to announce to the world that he carries around a “HOLY BIBLE”.
Hey, don’t besmirch the good name of Saul Goodman. Well, “good” as in “effective”. Which is way more than Hovind and his guy are going to be.
From the linked article:
and
(bolding mine)
Ah, if there was real justice, every time Hovind plays the religion card, another year. Every time he tries “sovereign citizen”, two more years. I suspect he will be in for his 150th birthday before he begins to get the hint he is WRONG.
nope!
He will never admit he is wrong in this or anything else.
uncle frogy
You all are a bunch of came from nothing retards lol
BREAKDOWN ON WHY PROSECUTORS WANT TO CENSOR KENT HOVIND IN HIS UPCOMING TRIAL
CRIMINALS PROSECUTING KENT HOVIND: http://freekenthovind.com/2015/02/25/breaking-criminals-prosecuting-kent-hovind-in-usa-vs-kent-hovind-case-march-2nd/
PROSECUTOR J. Ryan Love Protects Violent Felon Working for ATF: http://freekenthovind.com/2015/02/24/j-ryan-love-protects-felon-as-new-prosecutor-in-usa-vs-kent-hovind-court-case/
PROSECUTOR SILENCING JURY AND EVIDENCE: http://freekenthovind.com/2015/02/18/prosecutor-silence-jury-evidence-kent-hovind-case/
1- PROOF: Letters from professionals absolve Kent Hovind from all wrong-doing: http://freekenthovind.com/2015/02/14/proof-letters-absolving-kent-hovind-irs-illegally-imprisonment/
2 – PROOF: Judge Margaret Casey Rodgers caught altering court transcript: http://freekenthovind.com/2015/02/03/urgent-proof-judge-margaret-casey-rodgers-rape-comment/
3 -PROOF: Judge Margaret Casey Rodgers is anti-christian and bias: http://cowgernation.com/2015/01/31/free-kent-hovind-imprisoned-8-years-now-facing-new-trial-for-bogus-charges-with-a-biased-anti-christian-judge-presiding/
4- PROOF: Judge Margaret Casey Rodgers anti-christian Judge: http://freekenthovind.com/2015/01/31/kent-hovind-case-irs-al-sharpton-anti-christian-judge/
4 – PROOF: Judge Margaret Casey Rodgers pre-judged Kent calling him the ‘HEAD OF A CRIMINAL ORGANIZATION’: http://freekenthovind.com/2015/02/02/shocking-speech-judge-margaret-casey-rodgers-just-sentencing/
5 – PROOF: Sexual deviant, immoral and mentally-ill people imprisoned Kent Hovind: http://freekenthovind.com/2015/02/02/20-facts-proving-immoral-deviants-imprisoned-kent-hovind/
6 – IRS arrest and seize over $19k from widowed senior citizen http://freekenthovind.com/2015/02/12/ben-swann-irs-arrest-senior-citizen-structuring/
7 – IRS caught stealing a quarter of a billion from American people: http://freekenthovind.com/2015/02/17/irs-illegally-stole-quarter-billion-americans-free-kent-hovind/
8 – IRS apologizes for abusing their laws: http://freekenthovind.com/2015/02/11/irs-apologetic-tactical-retreat-structuring-laws-designed-drug-dealers/
9 – Congress furious with the IRS for targeting Christian Americans: http://freekenthovind.com/2015/02/16/report-congress-furious-irs-targeting-christian-americans/
10 – New AG Loretta Lynch caught protecting drug money launderers and terrorists: http://freekenthovind.com/2015/02/16/new-ag-lynch-protects-drug-money-launderers-terrorists/
Robert admits he is a liar: http://freekenthovind.com/2015/01/31/unreal-non-stop-defamatory-remarks-kent-hovind/
RLBaty lies: http://freekenthovind.com/2015/01/30/lies-rlbaty-kent-hovind-jo-hovind-v-usa-irs/
Supporters slams RLBaty and his lies: http://freekenthovind.com/2015/02/13/supporter-slams-kent-hovind-anti-christian-defamer/
[I’m only letting this through because it’s such a lovely compendium of hate and delusion. Cagle is now banned. –pzm]
you all are a bunch of babbling vomit came from nothing retards lol
Was there an actual argument you wanted to present, Donna?
If Donna is sticking around can I just be the first to…
*Grabs popcorn*
*Pulls up a chair*
Damn. Now I want actual popcorn.
As an aside, the writer should get 10 Biblepoints for this creative way of mentioning evolution without acknowledging it as actual factual science. Evolution? Just a fad. (Geology and the fossil record were clearly made up by marketers to sell dinosaur toys)
Monitor note
Donna Cagle,
If you’re more than just a drive-by troll, you should be aware that ablist slurs such as “retards” are unacceptable here. Insults, ignorance and inability to write a coherent sentence are all OK, so you shouldn’t feel too restricted.
Hello Donna, are you Kent Hovind’s daughter? :)
A bunch of babbling vomit?
My old English teacher should be up to around 5,000 RPM by now, I reckon.
My knowledge of the US justice system comes exclusively from movies and TV shows so I have to ask: is it even possible to just argue “I didn’t know it was illegal”???
We have a saying around here: “Nul n’est censé ignorer la loi”, meaning roughly that you cannot hide behind the fact that you didn’t know something was illegal… you ought to know, that’s your job to know because if you do “it” and are caught, too bad for ya…
I see that ol’ Clueless Kent has dropped the used-car-salesman look in favor of the much more fashionably contemporary Phil Robertson styling.
(Oops – note to self: don’t try to comment on anything at 5 am in the morning before coffee. Anyhoo, is that proposed “debate” with PZ still going to happen?)
Kent doesn’t have that excuse. He did consult lawyers, who told him to pay his taxes. He didn’t like the answers, and arrogantly invented illegitimate reasons he was above taxes. Which is why he is in jail, and likely to stay there for a while.
“popularly-accepted notions such as evolution and an “old Earth.””
Shouldn’t the word be “scientific” instead of “popularly-accepted notions”?
The journalist seemed quite taken by the greying Hovind.
Tom
Some crimes require an element of “willfulness”. Tax protesters have evolved, if you will excuse the expression, the “Cheek defense” to account for that. Hovind set up his own Cheek defense for non-filing, which may account for him never being charged with tax evasion.
http://ytmp.blogspot.com/2015/02/has-kent-hovind-broken-any-laws.html
re: “HOLY BIBLE”
actually that’s a typo* the guy is a well known landscape gardener and that’s his book on Ilex aquifolium!
____________
*Tape-o??
Thanks Nerd & Peter Reilly.
To be sure, being truthfully ignorant of an arcane rule will most certainly grant you some leniency over here. But my guess is that as a defense, to argue “I didn’t know” would be considered foolish at best. Especially if you’re represented by lawyers obviously.
To be aware of the legality of your actions is basically considered one of the obligations of being a citizen (or, of course, a resident/tourist/what have you).
(I should add that I’m not an expert of the French legal system either)
I’ve always been told, “Ignorance of the law is no excuse”, usually in ref to something as minor as speeding (a little), and claiming to have not seen the new, lower speed limit sign. I always assumed, that the “ignorance of…” trope applied all the way up the rankings of criminal statutes.
Is that lawyer implying that one cannot be charged with a crime when one disagrees with the powers that be?? So disagree, and be scottfree of any and all charges. Is that the teflon defense?
“Yeah, I broke that window, but I disagree with the man in that house so he can not charge me to replace that window, He is only charging me because I lawfully disagree with him.” [rehearsal]
twas brillig (stevem) @ 20
Some legal systems distinguish between strict liability offenses, which don’t require any proof of intent, and others. In Australia, for example, all speeding and traffic offenses are strict liability ones – you don’t have to intend to be breaking the speed limit, or even aware of it, merely to be observed doing so.
…cellmate…New Hampshire prison camp….legal genius????
1. If this prisoner was a legal genius, then why is he in prison? This is self contradictory at best and not a good sign for picking a lawyer.
Virtually all of us, including myself aren’t legal geniuses. But we know enought to stay out of federal prison.
2. Hovind put himself in prison for 8 1/2 years. Normally tax evasion is a civil offense. The IRS doesn’t want to put people in prison which costs lots of money, they just want the taxes owed.
3. It’s almost painful to watch him doing it again. It’s obvious he has almost no ability to think logically or coherently.
4. It doesn’t take much to be a leader and hero of the fundie xians. Even long stretches in prison is no problem. Jim Bakker was put away for a long time. He is back again and doing quite well at skimming money from…the xians.
This might lead to the Schrödinger’s Leadfoot defense: “You see, your honour, I was simply moving along completely unaware of my motion when a copper observed me, collapsing my quantum wave function into a state above the local speed limit – through no fault of my own! What’s more, I believe that speed limit in question is so highly localised in our universe that it is negligible. Ignoring it had no significant effect on any of the widely accepted models. Not guilty, your honour.”
And on that note: Dear tax service, my sum total wealth is negligible compared to the total wealth of human civilisation. To save everyone some unecessary calculations involving decimal places nobody will ever look at I shall therefore not pay any taxes. You’re welcome. Alternatively, I would also be happy to round my taxes to “1”, thus effectively eliminating them from any calculations. I enclose one hundred pounds to cover my life taxes. Keep the change.
I looked through the links that Cagle thinks “prove” all kinds of things. All they really prove is that Cagle and the authors of the links she supplied (assuming they are not all authored by her) really don’t understand anything about how the law works. That’s not surprising, since they have lined up on Hovind’s side and probably think the “sovereign citizen” silliness is actually a sound legal theory.
If all yer link is FreeKentHovind.com – well there’s yer problem right there.
Hovind and the law. Sadly my schadenfreude scale only goes up to 10.
I accidentally touched one of those links to freekenthovind. Wow. The page pretty much just said to watch a YouTube vid, which I did not do. The other pages were much the same.
I like the picture of the guy who desecrated his Bible with tape, there.
@27: Rich Woods:
Recalibrate to a logarithmic scale — that should take care of the issue.
8->
If you want a full dose of the craziness of Hovind’s supporters, just listen to some of the daily updates they’ve been leaving:
https://www.youtube.com/user/LoneStar1776/videos
Their grasp of the law and how legal proceedings are conducted is tenuous at best.
This one, left this morning, ratchets up the rhetoric against the sitting judge, calling for God to “take her out” (4:18). I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s banned from the courtroom if the court officials get wind of that one.
@Shadow, #29:
Didn’t work for me.
is that guy in the photo wearing a GoPro strapped to his chest? what does he think he is going to record?