‘Sovereign Citizen’ Wins Appeal Over Invalid Waiver of Counsel

A “sovereign citizen” and tax protester didn’t knowingly and intelligently waive counsel in his tax evasion trial, a federal appeals court said July 15.

Sovereign citizens generally believe that even though they physically reside in the U.S., they aren’t bound by certain laws and don’t have to answer to government authorities. Tax protesters believe they have a constitutional or legal right not to pay income taxes.

Louis Hansen began falling behind on his taxes in 1999. By 2012, he owed the IRS nearly $343,000. He apparently believed from seminars he attended that he could pay these outstanding taxes using checks ...