Sending Your Bills to the Government Is Silly, Not Criminal

Federal prosecutors in Colorado have found a way to use a serious tool against fraud to persecute some fringe political dissenters. The protesters, who deny the legitimacy of the U.S. government, take bills they owe, add notes to the effect of “Thank you for paying this debt,” and send them to government agencies like the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The government doesn’t pay the debts -- it throws the notices in the trash. Yet prosecutors are outrageously charging the protesters under the False Claims Act with the felony of submitting fraudulent financial claims on the government. This serious abuse of power violates the First Amendment -- and verges on prosecutorial misconduct.

The case of one such protester, Gunther Glaub, came to my attention through a former student involved in his defense. When I heard the facts, I admit I couldn’t quite believe it. Glaub and three other men are charged with felonies that could bring each 25 to 30 years in prison. The other defendants face bad check charges alongside their False Claims Act charges. But Glaub is charged only with five counts of fraudulently submitting bills to the government.