Tax Foe Who Ran for Governor Admits Evasion, Gets 3-Year Term

When he was a Republican candidate for governor in 2002, George “Nick” Jesson brashly campaigned in red, white and blue attire on a platform that taxes were unconstitutional and easily skirted. On Monday, in a wheelchair and wearing an inmate’s jumpsuit, Jesson pleaded guilty in a Santa Ana courtroom to state tax evasion charges.

The admission of guilt to three felony counts of filing false tax returns from 1997 through 1999 resulted in a sentence of three years in prison.

Because he had already pleaded guilty to federal charges of tax evasion in April, he will serve the new sentence concurrently with his 27-month federal prison term.

Jesson’s attorney, Michael Ware, said the legal problems that dogged his client since the campaign statements caught the attention of tax authorities had left the businessman financially broken and possibly unable to pay restitution, expected by prosecutors to exceed $238,000.

“Obviously, he’s devastated,” Ware said.

His wife, Trina, is charged with four felony counts of filing false tax returns and faces seven years in state prison if convicted on all charges.

She will be back in court Aug. 11 to appear before Superior Court Judge Francisco P. Briseno, the same jurist who sentenced her husband.

During Jesson’s campaign for governor, the 55-year-old from Fountain Valley took out an advertisement in USA Today to announce that he had stopped withholding taxes for the employees of his multimillion-dollar electronics businesses. The reason, he said, was that the government had no authority to demand the money.

Jesson received 1% of the vote in the Republican primary.

Since that time, his businesses have collapsed and his attorney said Jesson has developed debilitating back pain that requires him to use a wheelchair.

Still, Ware said, “he is a very resilient individual. He is also a very patriotic individual and believes very strongly in this country. His disagreement with taxing authorities is as American as apple pie.”

Holly McDonell, a spokeswoman for the state Franchise Tax Board, said underreporting of income is part of the $6.5 billion the state believes it is owed by California taxpayers but has not been paid.