Branson tax evaders sentenced to probation

But Branson-area businessmen Martin R. Dingman and Shane O. Grady hugged each other and then exchanged pleasantries with the government officials who prosecuted them for not paying their taxes. They each received three years of probation at their Jan. 29 sentencing.

U.S. District Court Judge James England told Dingman and Grady that recent revisions to federal sentencing laws allowed him to take into account their contrition and cooperation with the U.S. government. Still, the judge said he was “offended” that Dingman, Grady and other tax protesters use religion and the U.S. Constitution to justify their illegal actions.

In July, both men pleaded guilty to willfully refusing to file federal income tax returns from 1996 to 2001 while part owners and employees of American Strap Inc., a leather products manufacturer based in northern Arkansas. Dingman later bought out Grady – now a Branson Realtor – and changed the company’s name to Martin Dingman Leathergoods.

IRS offer

In November, Dingman and Grady accepted a unique offer from the Internal Revenue Service to share their stories with local media outlets, including Springfield Business Journal and radio shows in Branson and Springfield.

Dingman and Grady told SBJ they put their reputations on the line to educate others about the consequences of their emotionally driven tax protest. Both men said anti-tax advocates who invoked Christianity and patriotism convinced them not to pay their federal income taxes.

At the sentencing hearing, Stan Weiner, Grady’s Kansas City attorney, described the tax protesters who persuaded his client to join their cause as “snake-oil salesmen.”

He added, “It’s a shame they’re not here to bear the brunt of what they’ve brought.”

Dingman and Grady told SBJ they learned about the anti-tax movement through two deacons at Dingman’s church in Branson.

Dingman and Grady said they attended a seminar led by Lindsey Springer, a Tulsa, Okla., man who – along with more than 70 plaintiffs – sued the U.S. government in 1996, alleging that federal income tax is unconstitutional. Springer is the founder of Bondage Breakers Ministries.

In February 1998, a federal judge granted summary judgment against Springer and his fellow plaintiffs and imposed sanctions against them, and a year later, the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the judgment and assessed additional sanctions against Springer and the other appellants, according to court documents.

After Dingman and Grady shared their stories with local media, Springer filed a defamation lawsuit against SBJ, Dingman, Grady and IRS Special Agent Bonnie MacLeod, an agency spokeswoman. The case is pending in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri.

Painful remorse

While they say others certainly influenced them, Dingman and Grady have taken full responsibility for breaking the law.

Both men have paid federal taxes on their income from 1996–2001. Dingman paid a total of $342,258 in back taxes, and Grady paid $219,091, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Dingman told England his poor judgment led to a chapter of his life marred by “shame and embarrassment.” He said the emotional turmoil his family endured easily outweighed the financial burden of mounting legal fees and tax penalties. “There’s no one to blame except me,” Dingman said. “I made poor choices.”

Grady was likewise repentant. “I deeply regret my decision, more so what it’s done to my wife and family,” he told the judge.

England waived restitution and fines, and ruled that both men would be allowed to travel internationally: Dingman for business, and Grady to further his Christian mission work in the Philippines.

“I feel like God had a lot to do with this,” a relieved Grady said outside England’s courtroom. “The change in the sentencing guidelines was good. Now, we can finally put all this behind us.”