Court documents record that Ron Weinland has no respect for the law (of the land.) That goes against everything that Herb taught us in the church. Wee were told to follow the laws of the land and to render to Cesar what was his. Weinerdude too what he thought was his and also stiffed the government.
3. Promote respect for the law.
The facts of this case demonstrate Weinland has no respect for the law. Weinland was revered as the leader of his church and as the Prophet. Church members testified that it did not matter to them what Weinland spent or what he was paid. Weinland could have paid himself and his family members virtually any salary, and the members of PKG neither would have been concerned nor known. Yet, Weinland chose to comingle funds and expenses, file false W-2s, and file false returns (or no return), all in an attempt to evade paying taxes. To date, Weinland has neither admitted culpability nor accepted responsibility for his criminal conduct.
Income taxes are a duty required by federal law. The federal income tax system is based on voluntary taxpayer participation. For it to function, taxpayers must respect the law and follow it. Weinland cannot be allowed to fail to pay $245,000 in taxes on approximately $4.4 million dollars under these circumstances merely because he is a religious leader. No one is above the law. A significant term of imprisonment in this case will promote respect for the law.
The entire court document is here: The Sentencing of False Prophet Ronald Weinland
I hope Weinland has aggravated the court sufficiently to warrant an aggravated sentence, thus keeping him off the street and impeding his ability to screw with other people's minds for the maximum amount of time allowable by law.
ReplyDeleteFunny, Herbert Armstrong did all the same things on a grander scale... and yet... and yet... he got away with it.
ReplyDeleteHWA was smart enough to have Stanley Rader at his side to keep him from stepping over the line and getting in too much legal trouble.
ReplyDeleteThere's nothing to substitute for Executive Ability.
ReplyDeleteExcept that HWA changed his mind and decided to fight the authorities when the receivership happened.
ReplyDeleteYes, and I believe Rader lobbied to get the law in California changed to keep the state government out of church records, then the issue was dropped. Rader earned his pay during this crisis.
ReplyDeleteI'd like to read that "law". Exactly where is the "law" that says we must pay income tax on or wages?
ReplyDeleteChapter and verse - as they say...
Gary G