Failing to send him to jail would reduce the crime of tax evasion to “little more than a bad investment,” she said.
Chicago U.S. Attorney Zachary Fardon filed the one-sentence notice of appeal with the appeals court today. At a press conference after the sentencing, Fardon said Warner had been held accountable and rejected the notion Kocoras had sent a message that a wealthy man need only write a check to avoid prison. Judges must account for many circumstances in tailoring sentences to individual defendants, he said.
“There is no right or wrong when it comes to imposing sentence, and different judges are going to see similar facts and circumstances in different ways,” Fardon said at the time.
Lawyers for Warner, who has a net worth of $1.7 billion, argued that he deserved leniency because of his charitable contributions. They cited his donation of $140 million in cash and toys to charities.
Before sentencing Warner, the judge read letters from supporters describing some of the billionaire’s charitable deeds for schools, a kidney dialysis patient, Ty Inc. salesmen and his local park district.
‘Best Served’
“Society will be best served by allowing him to continue his good works,” Kocoras concluded.
Warner’s lawyers said he sought entry in an IRS voluntary disclosure program that has attracted more than 43,000 taxpayers who avoided prosecution since 2009. Prosecutors said he didn’t apply to the program until learning the government knew of his conduct.
Warner paid a civil penalty of $53 million and filed amended tax returns for the years 1999 to 2008, his lawyers said. He has also paid $14 million in back taxes and interest, according to prosecutors.
From 1996 to 2008, Warner parked money at UBS AG in Switzerland and then at Zuercher Kantonalbank, failing to disclose those holdings to his own accountants, according to court papers. By 2008, the balance of his undisclosed account exceeded $107 million, prosecutors said.