| Court: |
US Court of Appeals (8th Cir) |
|
| Facts: |
Ojala was an outspoken critic of the war. Then, somehow, he gets
convicted for failing to file his taxes. |
|
| Posture: |
Convicted at trial, appeals. |
|
| Issue: |
Was this a reprisal? |
|
| Holding: |
Prosecuting public figures who announce that they're violating the
law is within the allowed degree of disctretion. Affirmed. |
|
| Rule: |
To succeed with a defense of discriminatory prosecution, one must:
- Show that others similarly situated have not been prosecuted for
the same acts
- Show that the government's selection of the defendant has been in
bad faith.
|
|
| Reasoning: |
There were certainly lots of failures to file, but this guy
announced that he was doing it in protest, thereby inviting
the prosecution. |
|
| Dicta: |
|