Meredith

DefendanL-Appellants Lynne Meredith, Teresa Manharth Giordano, and Gayle By-bee appeal their jury convictions for conspiracy to defraud the United States, mail fraud, false representation of a Social Security number, passport fraud, and failure to file income tax returns. Their convictions arose from their participation in businesses that helped customers evade federal and state income taxes.

Defendants-Appellants contend that their convictions violate the First Amendment. We agree that mere advocacy of tax evasion — and nothing more — cannot support convictions for conspiracy or fraud. However, the defendants did far more than advocate. They developed a vast enterprise that helped clients hide their income from federal and state tax authorities. Accordingly, we reject their claims that their convictions violated the First Amendment. We also reject Giordano’s claim that the indictment erroneously included misdemeanor crimes among the eighty-one objects of the felony conspiracy count, and her challenge to the district court’s jury instruction on the crime of failure to file income taxes. However, we vacate Giordano’s restitution order and remand for recalculation because…