Indiana faces wave of ’sovereign citizens’ who declare independence

Indiana faces wave of ’sovereign citizens’ who declare independence

An increasing number of Indiana residents are declaring themselves "sovereign citizens" and personally seceding from the United States, says a report from ABC channel 6 in Indianapolis.

By doing so, residents contend that they no longer have to pay taxes, claiming their homes as embassies and using identification cards that show them as diplomats, 6News' Rafael Sanchez reported.

Indiana authorities call such proclamations both illegitimate and illegal. About 10 people every month ask the state to put a seal on a document so that they can claim freedom from taxes.

Channel 6 profiled Donald Moore, a father of seven who has made himself "official- looking" identification that he says exempts him from U.S. laws and U.S. taxes by making him an "ambassador" to the United States.

The ID card "gives me diplomatic immunity," Moore said. "The way I understand it, the federal government is incorporated, and all the states are incorporated. This takes me out of the corporation."

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But his assertion was rejected by Indiana's secretary of state.

"Just because you allege something or concoct yourself a document doesn't mean you're getting off the hook," Todd Rokita told channel 6. "You're going to get in worse trouble."

The "Sovereign Citizen" movement, which the Southern Poverty Law Center says has been around since the 1970s, focuses on laws and government paperwork its adherents believe allow them to effectively declare independence from the US.

But that assertion is often challenged in court. Earlier this week, a Florida man was sentenced to two years in prison after followers of the Sovereign Citizen movement convinced him to file a tax return in which he claimed the US government owed him $14 trillion.

According to the Miami New Times, "sovereign citizenship" is proliferating in prisons because of its promises of easy cash from the government and independence from laws.

Channel 6 in Indianapolis notes the case of Jonathan Dilley, who was sentenced to four years in prison for printing his own currency to pay off an $800,000 debt.

According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks extremist groups in the United States, the sovereign citizen movement originates "in the ideology of the Posse Comitatus, an anti-Semitic group that raged through the Midwest in the late 1970s and 1980s. ... Some of the more famous adherents of sovereign citizens' ideology include Oklahoma City bombing conspirator Terry Nichols and members of the Montana Freemen."

Nice. More power to them! Just the end of the article is disgusting... The terrorists at SPLC and of course saying anyone who does that is Terry Nichols.... sick

[edit on 5-3-2010 by Vitchilo]

This is extremely interesting.
This is the kind of creative things that as an european citizen I enjoy watching is US.

Basically during the US independency way, there were also actions that were similar to the ones reported above. The same for the American Civil War.

What if the future woulf feature massive independency of villages, cities and individuals?

However I don't think we have enough critical mass to start a revolution like that. But may the force be with you!

SPLC disgust me beyond comparison. 2 years in prison! because he filed a tax return as a way of protest.... FACISM!

...in the ideology of the Posse Comitatus, an anti-Semitic group that raged through the Midwest in the late 1970s and 1980s. ...

What a garbage comment by them. Anti-Semitic, my foot. more like anti-Zionist...

This makes me laugh though. I love it when the boat gets rocked.

Taxes are the price we pay for a civilized nation of laws.

The correction of our system is done through the ballot. Get out and vote.

If these guys would spend their time making this a better country, or getting themselves a better job, they would be happy and we would all be better off.

Putting light on these fringe elements is disgusting and encourages more people to think it is a real possibility.

If you don't want to pay your taxes and serve in the military, or if you don't like to vote and be proactive in government, get the he** out of America. We don't need your problem, we have enough with the illegal aliens, criminals, and such.

We need some politicians with integrity and courage, not cowards that run from their social responsibilities. Take this news for example:
www.cbsnews.com...
Is there bad reporting here, or is this just a perfect example of bad leadership?

[edit on 3/5/2010 by Jim Scott]

Originally posted by Jim Scott
Taxes are the price we pay for a civilized nation of laws.

The correction of our system is done through the ballot. Get out and vote.

If these guys would spend their time making this a better country, or getting themselves a better job, they would be happy and we would all be better off.

Putting light on these fringe elements is disgusting and encourages more people to think it is a real possibility.

If you don't want to pay your taxes and serve in the military, or if you don't like to vote and be proactive in government, get the he** out of America. We don't need your problem, we have enough with the illegal aliens, criminals, and such.

We need some politicians with integrity and courage, not cowards that run from their social responsibilities. Take this news for example:
www.cbsnews.com...
Is there bad reporting here, or is this just a perfect example of bad leadership?

[edit on 3/5/2010 by Jim Scott]

Yea, do that.. vote for the establishment tool who promises "change" and see how that works out.. lol

Sovereign citizens are harmless compared to the two deadliest political gangs since the soviets and nazis, aka GOP & DNC. The 2 partys have manipulated the system, and their loyal 'left vs right' cultists, to the point voting doesn't work anymore... obama is a perfect example.

Why not tell republicans and democrats to leave?, they're the ones who keep recycling failed ideas and allow the death dealing failures to humanity, we call the federal govt, to remain in power...

Sovereign citizen types at least want nothing to do with the amoral, war manufacturing, lying gangsters in DC.. which is more admirable than submitting to the 2-party flock like a common divided and conquered sheep..

Clearly, these people have not thought this through. Let's say they get pulled over for speeding. They do not have a driver's license because they are sovereign. That makes two violations. They do not have insurance. That's three violations and the officer decides to make an arrest. They are taken to the cop shop and allowed to make a phone call. They call their "embassy." Their spouse arrives with an official looking letter. It is not official. Their "sovereignty" is not recognized by the State Department, the UN, or even Abkhazia. The police are generous and let that slide. All they want is, say. $2000.00 bail. The spouse presents "currency" they ran off on their Mac. Anyone else see the problem here? If they really want to avoid paying US taxes, they can always legally renounce their citizenship. But then they would have to leave the country because they would be illegal aliens. Many wealthy people do, in fact, do this. Take a look at the Nevis telephone directory some time. If they enjoy living in the continental US, for whatever reason, then they need to take responsibility. The roads they drive on, the water they drink, the police that keep them safe at night, etc, etc, etc. If they don't like everything that comes with being a US citizen, they can either work to change the system... or leave. Even if they leave they will have to pay taxes unless they renounce their citizenship. If you've got the money, Nevis is where it's at. (No, I am not a troll from the Nevis Chamber of Commerce )

Edit to include useful link if you really want to renounce your citizenship:

sovereignsociety.com...

[edit on 6-3-2010 by DJW001]