Feds Recommend Jail Again for Original "Survivor" Winner Richard Hatch
(CBS/AP) Federal prosecutors in Rhode Island are recommending a jail sentence for "Survivor" winner Richard Hatch for violating the terms of his supervised release.
PICTURES: Reality Stars and the Law
The 49-year-old is slated to be on "Celebrity Apprentice" beginning in March and has endured several legal battles in the past, the latest of which comes after his release from prison for a tax evasion conviction, and his alleged failure to file amended tax returns as a condition of that release.
Hatch was convicted in 2006 of failing to pay taxes on the $1 million he won on the first season of CBS reality show "Survivor" in 2000.
A grand jury indictment filed in Sept. 2005 said Hatch filed false 2000 and 2001 tax returns, omitting his income from "Survivor," $327,000 he was paid to co-host "The Wilde Show" on WQSX-FM in Boston, and $28,000 in rent on a property he owns in Newport.
In 2000, he had two accountants prepare tax returns which included his winnings from the reality show.
After learning that he would have to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in taxes, he did not file them, the indictment said. In 2002, he had one of the accountants prepare a second return, omitting the reality show winnings - these are the forms he filed, which called for a $4,500 refund.
As a result of these convictions, he served three years in prison in a minimum-security prison in Morgantown, W. Va.
A judge this month said Hatch violated the terms of his release by refusing to file amended tax returns for the years 2000 and 2001.
While prosecutors in court papers on Monday said that Hatch should return to jail, facing a maximum of two years in prison, or the remainder of his supervised-release term, Hatch responded by saying that he didn't refile his taxes because he has an appeal pending in the U.S. Tax Court. In addition, Hatch's lawyer has a chance to submit her own recommendation.
