'Girls Gone Wild' founder Joe Francis sentenced in tax evasion and jail bribery case

A federal judge sentenced “Girls Gone Wild” founder Joe Francis today to 301 days already served and a year of probation in a case in which the soft-porn mogul pleaded guilty to filing false income tax returns and bribing jail workers.

In September, Francis, 36, pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor counts of filing false tax returns in which he withheld $500,000 in interest income and another of bribing jail workers for food by giving them as much as $5,000 in goods. He was also ordered to pay nearly $250,000 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service. 

U.S. District Judge S. James Otero accepted Francis’ deal on the grounds that a key witness withheld information from prosecutors.

“It took us seven months, but in the end we demonstrated that the felony tax charges never should have been brought in the first place,” Brad Brian, Francis’ lead trial attorney, said in a statement. “As a result, the indictment was dismissed and the charges were reduced to only two misdemeanors with no jail time."

-- Baxter Holmes

Comments

[Neil]

This doesn't surprise me. The rich can get away with murder as long as they hire good representation. The poor get locked up for stealing a loaf of bread to feed their family.

[markiejoe]

Now he can get back to making porn.

[Gibraltar]

It is difficult to muster any empathy for Joe Francis. I'd like to see him do more jail time.

[Mother of daughter]

Joe Francis = enormous scum bag

[David Theiss]

I bet that's the last time ol' Joe assualts a member of the news media.

[ocguy71]

This guy made millions of drunk girls flashing their breasts and he didn't pay taxes. He got VERY lucky for timed served.

[Gaucho420]

Mother of Daughter: 100% CORRECT.

[Ernie]

There isn't enough money in the world to compensate for even a single minute in that terrible place called prison. The only reason he is successful is because girls made him that way - they gave him the commodity men will pay much for. He may be a scumbag Moms, but your daughters enable him. The good news is, fools like him think they are smarter than everyone else and inevitable run afoul of the law again. Maybe next time they can send him to gay prison where he can make a new film "Boys Gone Wild" - on my butt.

[Lysette]

Too bad. I wanted to see that guy put away forever. The charge he seems expert at avoiding is rape. He is a scumbag. There was an LA Times story a few years ago about him that made my stomach turn. Prison is the only appropriate place for him.

[disgusted]

great the pedo who coerced underaged girls
into taking of their clothes and selling those videos
of underage sex to millions gets one year
if he was black and kidnapped a girl and raped her and pimped her out
he would have gotten 8 years
that sucks kidnapping is minimum ten years
and selling child porn to millions should be twenty to life

[bbuc]

The judge did a good job here, and I can't believe all the self righteous weenies making these comments against Joe Francis.

This kid went out and made millions of dollars doing pretty much what every normal young adult guy would like to do... travel, party with cute chicks, and make money. And money was probably last on his list when he started.

He certainly didn't force any of the girls he recorded to do anything they weren't willing to do. The videos show they were all cooperative -fully complicit.

As for their ages, what guy in his 20's (when he did most of the recordings) didn't date teen agers?

Aside from the offenses of minor tax evasion and bribing guards for food, the only crimes this guy committed were making a pants load of money while in his 20's and having a real, good 'ol time while he was at it.

There will be more whining and gold digging against him and I, for one, hope he gets to hang onto most of his money.