Anti-tax, Tea Party activist ordered to federal prison for tax crimes

Doug Guetzloe must report on October 22

Mugshot of Doug Guetzloe from May 2011, when he presented himself at the Orange County jail to serve a 60-day sentence for an elections law crime he had unsuccessfully appealed since 2006. He was charged with federal tax crimes days later.

ORLANDO, Fla. – A federal judge Monday ordered anti-tax activist and political consultant Doug Guetzloe to begin serving his 15-month sentence for tax crimes on October 22.

Guetzloe, a co-founder of the Florida Tea Party, was convicted of two federal crimes -- failing to file tax returns -- after a February 2012 trial and was sentenced in May to 15 months in prison.

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Federal guidelines called for a sentence of that length, in part, because of Guetzloe's previous criminal conviction for violating a state elections law, which resulted in a 60-day jail sentence.

On August 22, he was ordered to report to the United States Penitentiary in Atlanta on Sept. 4.

He sought to delay his reporting to prison, claiming medical issues needed to be addressed, but U.S. District Judge Gregory Presnell on August 30 denied the request, ruling the issues were not "emergent."

But Presnell later granted the request for delay after Guetzloe's attorney filed another motion stating Guetzloe went to an emergency room on August 29.

Guetzloe's public defender this week filed a status report saying Guetzloe had surgery on Sept. 4, was expected to be released from the hospital on Sept. 10 and needed "a couple of weeks" recuperation before he could travel to prison.

Presnell then granted a further delay, issuing an order stating Guetzloe must report to prison on October 22.


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