Snipes Granted Appellate Bond

In Ocala, Florida on Thursday, US District Judge William Terrell Hodges granted bond for actor Wesley Snipes pending his appeal of his conviction and sentence. He had been scheduled to surrender to federal prison authorities during the first week of June to begin serving his sentence. Snipes was convicted February 1 on three misdemeanor counts of failure to file federal income tax returns for 1999-2001 but was acquitted on two felony counts and three other misdemeanor failure to file counts. He was sentenced to three years in prison on April 24. Judge Hodges expressed doubt about the merits of Snipes’ appeal but determined that he was not a flight risk (Orlando Sentinel).