Douglas Bruce convicted of tax evasion, faces prison time

A policymaker and perpetual gadfly who spent decades successfully advocating for fewer taxes now faces years in prison for failing to pay his own.

State prosecutors convinced a Denver jury that Douglas Bruce used a small-government charity he founded to hide millions of dollars from the state taxman, pocketing interest and using the funds to further his political agenda.

After four hours of deliberation, jurors Wednesday convicted Bruce on four counts, the most serious of which carries a penalty of up to six years in prison and $500,000 in fines.

Throughout a contentious, eight-day trial, prosecutors presented jurors with a dizzying array of Bruce’s unconventional business transactions, loans to himself and land deals that occurred over a five-year period starting in 2004.

Jurors said the cumulative evidence — and in some cases, the lack of paper trail — pointed to Bruce’s guilt.

“If you’re going to get a loan, go to a bank,” juror Geno Tapia said. “The evidence spoke for itself.”

Bruce was found guilty in Denver District Court of felony tax evasion, attempting to influence a public servant and filing a false tax return as well as a misdemeanor charge of failing to file a return.

By some accounts, nobody has more heavily influenced the state budget than Bruce, a former lawmaker and El Paso County commissioner.

He’s best known as the obstinate author and champion of the fiscal game-changer Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights, which allows Coloradans to vote on any tax increase.

Ideological allies such as Jon Caldara, president of the libertarian think tank Independence Institute, don’t believe the conviction will affect the perpetual outsider’s reputation.

“It’s not like he’s losing a lot of respect, because the establishment in Colorado didn’t give it to him to begin with, which is too bad,” Caldara said.

It will, however, prevent Bruce from voting until he has completed his sentence and any subsequent parole.

State Assistant Attorney General Robert Shapiro declined to state the penalty he’ll seek at a Feb. 13 hearing but said contrition is typically a factor that courts take into consideration during sentencing.

“If he persists in his contempt for the court system, we’ll ask for the proper sentence,” Shapiro said. “Mr. Bruce, for personal, selfish and narcissistic reasons, took advantage of our charitable-giving process. He was able to cheat Colorado for the better part of a decade.”

Bruce operated the now-defunct Active Citizens Together as a nonprofit. He dumped $2.4 million into the charity through various avenues and had the discretion to pull out cash to support his political activities.

While a county commissioner, for example, Bruce used the charity to draft himself a $1 million cashier’s check in dramatic protest of an El Paso County land deal he disagreed with. At a public meeting, he offered to buy the offending parcel himself.

During closing arguments, Shapiro likened Bruce to the Wizard of Oz, pulling levers and pushing buttons to benefit himself from behind a curtain.

Bruce, who represented himself, said prosecutors couldn’t prove he collected income from the loans he made to the charity and pointed out that after an audit, the IRS left the organization’s nonprofit status intact.

But Bruce’s defense was frequently stymied by his lack of legal experience and procedural knowledge of Colorado courts.

He also seemed to rankle Judge Anne Mansfield by openly arguing with her, ignoring judicial directions and fixating on issues outside the scope of the trial.

Mansfield ruled many of Bruce’s questions improper and many of his exhibits inadmissible.

He said he plans to appeal.

Two jurors said Bruce’s abrasive personality didn’t factor into their deliberations, but Tapia conceded, “It would have been a lot easier for the defendant — a lot easier for everyone — if he had an attorney.”

Bruce declined to comment Wednesday afternoon, not wanting to sink himself before sentencing.

But earlier that day — and throughout the trial — he didn’t hold back.

“This was the dirtiest trial I have seen in 38 years,” he said hours before the verdict was announced, “regardless of the outcome.”

Jessica Fender: 303-954-1244 or jfender@denverpost.com