Back in September, Wesley Snipes, accused of filing a false claim for an income tax refund, asked for a change of venue for his trial. He preferred Manhattan to Ocala, Florida. He asked for the change because of travel time from nearby airports to Ocala and because he has a home in New York. Judge William Terrell Hodges denied the motion. Snipes had also earlier charged that his prosecution was racially motivated; the judge denied that and told snipes that it wasn’t racial. Rather, he’s being prosecuted because he’s famous.
Since then, Snipes has gotten a new attorney. But it’s back to the same old arguments; Snipes’ new attorney, Robert Bernhoft has asked for a change of venue (or alternatively, dismissal of the charges). Mr. Bernhoft complains that Ocala was selected because “…[prosecutors] deliberately chose the most racially discriminatory venue available to the government with the best possibility of an all-white southern jury where Snipes has never resided.”
Mr. Bernhoft’s charge of inherent racism in Ocala was met by skepticism by both a local prosecutor and a public defender. “That’s perhaps the most outrageous claim I’ve ever heard made in open court,” said Chief Assistant State Attorney Ric Ridgway. Chief Assistant Public Defender Bill Miller echoed Mr. Ridgway’s views, telling the Associated Press, “I’ve never filed such a motion in any of my cases. If I felt I needed to, I would have.”
Mr. Bernhoft hired a public relations firm to survey citizens in New York and Ocala. The AP noted that one of the questions asked was the views on the confederate flag. Not surprisingly, people in Ocala viewed the flag with more pride than people in New York. Given that Florida was part of the Confederacy, that shouldn’t be a shock.
Judge Hodges will eventually rule on the motion. Based on his previous decisions, I expect that the trial will open as scheduled early next year in Ocala.
