A packed courtroom greeted pastors Anthony and Harriet Jinwright today as they arrived for sentencing seven months after being convicted of conspiracy and tax evasion.
Bishop Anthony Jinwright, 54, arrived first, in a Mecklenburg Sheriff’s van and wearing an orange jumpsuit. Harriet Jinwright, 51, arrived a few minutes later, surrounded by attorneys.
Neither she nor her attorneys responded to reporters’ questions.
Spectators began arriving at the federal courthouse in uptown Charlotte well before the start of the 9 a.m. hearing. By 8:30 a.m., the courtroom was full, and at times a line to entered the building stretched outside the front door.
Some Jinwright supporters arrived wearing black sweatshirts emblazoned with the phrase “MIRACLE on the 8th,” an apparent reference to their desire to see the Jinwrights, who pastor Greater Salem Church in West Charlotte, avoid prison sentences.
None of the supporters we approached would talk with Qcitymetro.com.
Prosecutors said the couple failed to report more than $2.3 million in taxable income from 2002 to 2007 and failed to pay nearly $700,000 in federal taxes.
Anthony Jinwright, 54, was convicted on 13 of 18 charges, including conspiracy and multiple counts of filing false tax returns and tax evasion. The charges carry a maximum punishment of 53 years in prison. He was acquitted on five counts of mail fraud.
Harriet Jinwright, 51, was found guilty on four of 13 charges, including conspiracy and tax evasion. Those charges carry a maximum of 20 years in prison. She was acquitted on three counts of tax evasion and six counts of filing false tax returns.
The hearing was set to begin at 9 a.m. and was to include legal issues related to Anthony Jinwright’s pre-sentence report.
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Surrounded by attorneys, Harriet Jinwright arrives at the federal courthouse in uptown Charlotte about 10 minutes before the scheduled start of her sentencing hearing for conspiracy and tax evasion. (Photo: Qcitymetro.com)
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Spectators, some wearing black sweatshirts emblazoned with the phrase “MIRACLE on the 8th,” arrive at the federal courthouse in uptown Charlotte. (Photo: Qcitymetro.com)
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Federal prosecutors arrive at the federal courthose in uptown Charlotte for the sentencing of pastors Anthony and Harriet Jinwright, convicted in May on multiple counts related to conspiracy and tax evasion.
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The line to enter the federal courthouse in uptown Charlotte at times stretched outside the front door. (Photo: Qcitymetro.com)
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