Yesterday the Virgin Islands Supreme Court heard testimony by attorneys representing Senator Alicia ‘Chucky’ Hansen, defendant, and Board of Elections Chairman Adelbert Bryan, plaintiff, concerning the legitimacy of the Senator’s candidacy and more pointedly her eligibility to seek office in the upcoming 31st Legislature of the Virgin Islands.
In Hansen’s defense, attorney Lee Rohn argued that the crimes Hansen was convicted of were misdemeanors, therefore they did not fall under the ‘moral turpitude’ umbrella. However the prosecutor, attorney Emile Henderson, contended that they were indeed acts of moral turpitude because the Senator’s actions were “willful”, a term used when determining moral turpitude.
So is Senator Alicia ‘Chucky’ Hansen guilty of moral turpitude? We will allow you to make that determination for yourself by simply laying the facts bare.
The Virgin Islands Consortium, through its sources, managed to secure documents detailing the nine counts of criminal activity that Senator Hansen was charged with in the District Court of the Virgin Islands, a copy of the section of V.I. Code describing when a person should be eligible to vote or seek office, documents revealing Senator Hansen’s voting history, a letter written by V.I. Attorney General Vincent Frazer giving his opinion on moral turpitude as it relates to Senator Hansen’s candidacy, and documents revealing changes made to the V.I. Code in relation to committing a felony and voting.
Grand Jury charges against Senator Alicia ‘Chucky’ Hansen are as follows in screenshot form. Click the image to view.
As you can see, Senator Hansen was charged with nine counts of criminal acts from 2001 through September 13th, 2006. Five counts of Failure to file taxes and four counts of perjury. On May 28th, 2009, Senator Hansen was convicted of Counts I, II and III. Furthermore, 5 out of 5 times the charges stated that the criminal acts of not paying taxes were performed “willfully” by Senator Hansen.
V.I. Code 263 Section A states that “every person who has been twice convicted by a court of competent jurisdiction of a felon or of a crime involving moral turpitude shall be debarred from voting for a period of ten years.
Section B says, “Every person who has been twice convicted by a court of competent jurisdiction of a felony or of a crime involving moral turpitude shall be debarred from voting for a period of one year following the date of discharge. See the screenshot below.
V.I. Code 263, Section A
Senator Alicia ‘Chucky’ Hansen has never been barred from voting, as the records below prove.
Senator Alicia Hansen’s voting history
On July 12th, 2011 the V.I. Code was amended with the following text to replace V.I. Code 263 Section A of the 1963 law. It now reads: “The right to vote is automatically restored to every person convicted of a felony upon completion of all the conditions of the person’s sentence, including any period of incarceration, probation, parole, or payment of restitution.” Have a look at the screenshot below.
Revised Code
But although the Organic Act was amended to reflected new voting rules for convicted felons, it was revised on July 12th, 2011, two years after Senator Hansen was convicted in the Virgin Islands District Court.
So what is moral turpitude? And does Senator Hansen’s crimes really classify as such? The term is defined as “conduct that is considered contrary to community standards of justice, honesty or good morals.”
In his case against Hansen, attorney Henderson argued that it is “indisputable that Hansen was convicted of three counts of willful failure to file income tax returns — a crime not just against the Virgin Islands government, but a violation of her oath to the people of the Virgin Islands,” he said.
Henderson contends that although the crime is a misdemeanor, it involves “evil motive, bad purpose and intentional, deliberate conduct, which would then constitute a crime involving moral turpitude”
In a letter dated December 19th, 2011, Attorney General Vincent Frazer wrote to Rupert W. Ross, Jr., then chairman of the St. Croix District Board of Elections, and said that while there were several sections in V.I. Code about crimes involving dishonesty, a crime of moral turpitude is not explicitly defined.
“Senator Alicia Hansen was convicted in 2009 on three counts of failure to file required tax returns under Title 33 V.I. Code §1542 which was repealed and replaced by Title 33 V.I. Code §95, and which imposed a penalty of no more than one year in prison,” Fraze wrote.
“Senator Hansen was sentenced, among other things, three years of probation. A Felony is classified, under title 14 V.I. Code §2, as a crime or offence which is punishable by imprisonment for more than one year. Thus, Senator Alicia Chuky Hansen was convicted on three misdemeanor offenses, not felonies,” he added.
On May 28th, 2009, U.S. Attorney Paul A. Murphy announced that Senator Alicia ‘Chucky’ Hansen had been sentenced to three years in prison for failure to pay her tax returns. She was given one year for each charge, but winded up serving no time in prison because visiting District Judge Frank Savage suspended all three years of her sentence and placed Hansen on probation for three years with “numerous and strict conditions”, according to the press release.
“Every person, especially those sworn to serve the people as public servants should take notice that every case is being reviewed for possible tax evasion and failure to file,” Murphy said.
“Every resident of the Virgin Islands, whose income meets the reporting requirements, has an obligation to file an income tax return and pay his/her fair share of the tax burden.”
Murphy continued: “Good public services, schools, hospitals, roads, sewers, police and fire services need the support of all taxpayers equally. Failing to pay income taxes that are due is cheating the fellow citizens of the Virgin Islands, not just the Government of the Virgin Islands.”
Murphy in his assessment believed that the convictions were so serious that he suggested to the courts that Senator Hansen be considered for upward departure. The term upward departure concerns giving a convicted criminal extended time in jail based on a varying amount of factors. To learn more, follow this link.
Yesterday, when the court trial was over, many Virgin Islanders could be seen leaving the building and talking about what they’d just heard, and in several groups, most believed that once the Supreme Court rules, Senator Alicia ‘Chucky’ Hansen will be disqualified to seek office in the upcoming 31st Legislature.
I spoke to Adelbert Bryan about the case, asking him how he felt about the prospects of Hansen being disqualified.
“The true test of the Supreme Court will be seen soon,” Bryan said, adding that over the years the Board of Elections has been “spineless” by ignoring the facts and allowing Senator Alicia ‘Chucky’ Hansen to run for office.
“This is nothing personal. People think it’s something personal that I have against Hansen, but we presented the facts.”
I also spoke to Senator Hansen, asking her simply how she felt about the case.
“I feel great,” Hansen told me.
When I asked what would her response be if the Judges did not rule in her favor, Hansen was noticeably perturbed by the question and told me how she felt about the allegations of moral turpitude leveled against her.
“Adelbert Bryan shot his son three times in the back,” Hansen told me. “He killed the people them pregnant cow and have the nerve to talk about damn moral turpitude? That’s how I feel about it.”
The Virgin Islands Supreme Court is expected to rule on the case soon.
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