The former Plainfield man who engaged in a months-long standoff in his boobytrapped home and who threatened to kill law enforcement officers is not getting out of prison following a resentencing hearing held in the United States District Court in Concord on Tuesday.
Ed Brown, now 78, was resentenced to an additional 17 years in prison for his standoff and threats sparked by his is and his wife’s refusal to pay income taxes. The Brown’s saga started in 2007, when they were convicted of tax evasion.
Brown and his wife, Elaine Brown, refused then to cooperate and were wanted for failure to show up in court in 2007 after they were convicted on charges of evading taxes on $2 million in income. The standoff with federal Marshalls started in June of 2007 and included concerts and the Browns becoming celebrities among the fringe right-wing for their refusal to pay taxes.
During the standoff, Ed Brown threatened to kill law enforcement, and explosive boobytraps were later found on the property after they were finally brought into custody in October.
A United States Supreme Court ruling in an unrelated case invalidated part of the law used to convict Ed Brown and it required a resentencing in the case, according to court records.
Brown’s attorney, Benjamin Faulkner, argued that Brown ought to be released from custody given his advanced age and the fact Brown has since renounced violent means. Assistant United States Attorney Seth Aframe wrote in a memorandum opposing his release that Brown has never shown remorse for his actions.
“The defendant’s memorandum makes clear that he still holds the same beliefs that caused him to act in a manner that caused extreme danger to the community,” Aframe wrote. “The defendant’s only argument that he won’t engage in similar dangerous conduct on release is his request that the Court believe his lawyer’s statement that he won’t.”
Judge George Singal ordered Brown resentenced, an order that Brown immediately appealed. Elaine Brown, 78, was rebased from jail in February after she expressed remorse for her actions. She has since sought a divorced from Ed Brown.
