The federal tax evasion trial for actor Wesley Snipes will move forward next month in Ocala, Florida, according to a filing ruling made this week by U.S. District Judge William T. Hodges. Snipes and his attorneys had tried to have the trial moved to another venue, alleging that racism within the central Florida city would keep the actor from getting a fair trial.
The actor's legal team had argued that Snipes had the right to a trial in New York, where he lived between October 2000 and April 2005 when the offenses allegedly occurred, or in Orlando, where he also has a home.
Snipes was indicted in October 2006 on eight counts of tax fraud. He was accused of trying to cheat the government out of nearly $12 million in false refund claims and not filing returns for six years.
