A federal district court has given actor Wesley Snipes the ability to file a motion for a new trial in his tax evasion case within 20 days.
Last month, an appeals court affirmed Snipess conviction on three misdemeanor counts of willful failure to file his tax returns for three years, and upheld his three-year prison sentence (see
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U.S. District Judge William Terrell Hodges said that in light of his motion for bail, he may, if he so chooses, file a motion for a new trial within 20 days of Thursdays order. The government may then file a response to his motion for a new trial within 20 days of service. The court will then reserve a ruling on all motions until receipt of a mandate, and until all pending motions (including any anticipated motion for new trial) are fully briefed and ripe for disposition.