Posted on Tuesday, 28th June 2011 by Charles Melvin

Richard Rubin, the husband of former Broward Commissioner Diana Wasserman-Rubin, was sentenced to 10 months in federal prison Wednesday for income tax evasion.

Wasserman-Rubin appeared distressed as the sentence was handed down in U.S. District Court in Fort Lauderdale. She told the judge that her husband has become her only caregiver as Parkinson’s disease affects her more and more. She kept her head bowed, resting on a cane, and held a wad of tissues to her face.

Rubin apologized to the judge, but prosecutors said that he continued to mischaracterize his crime in court Wednesday though he had pleaded guilty in April.

“I am ashamed of my thoughtless mistake six years ago,” Rubin said.

He must surrender to authorities by noon Aug. 31 and likely will serve his term in a minimum-security prison camp in Miami-Dade County, followed by three years of supervised release. Because he was given less than a year in prison, he will have to serve every day of the sentence. Federal inmates only receive credit that cuts their terms by 15 percent if the sentence exceeds one year.

Rubin’s efforts to minimize his crime at the sentencing vexed U.S. District Judge William Zloch so much that he sent Rubin and his defense attorney, Dave Bogenschutz, out of the courtroom to rethink Rubin’s position after Rubin said he could not remember if he had knowingly filed a false tax return for 2005.

“You can’t remember if you committed a crime?” Zloch asked him.

Rubin, 66, said he only realized a few months ago, before he was criminally charged, that he had done so.

Zloch didn’t appear to believe him. “Is that when the light bulb went on that you committed a crime?” the judge asked.

When Rubin returned to court after a five-minute conversation with his lawyer, he finally admitted that he knew he was concealing income when his tax return was filed in 2006.

Rubin understated his taxable income for 2005 by approximately $120,000, including $102,000 in real estate commission fees for a town of Davie land deal and more than $6,000 for the sale of a condo in Hollywood, according to court records. As part of his sentence, he must pay $104,671 in overdue taxes, penalties and interest.

Wasserman-Rubin, 64, leaned on her cane at the podium and spoke in a haltering voice. Her left arm was in a brace because she broke her wrist when she fell in her kitchen.

She asked Zloch to sentence her husband to house arrest because she depends on him now even for simple tasks. He organizes the 30 pills she takes every day, massages her limbs so she can stand and takes care of everything she can no longer do.

“I need him, I don’t know what else to say,” she said.

While Wasserman-Rubin’s deteriorating health elicited sympathy from the judge, Zloch said Rubin knew of his wife’s condition before he decided to commit a crime.

Federal officials said Rubin, of Weston, lied to Zloch about his finances and motive for not paying his taxes.

Prosecutor Jeffrey Kaplan told the judge Wednesday that Rubin continues to “spin” the circumstances surrounding his crime. And the prosecutor said Rubin’s failure to honestly report and pay the couple’s joint income taxes was “much more egregious” because Rubin and Wasserman-Rubin earned much of their livelihood over the years from government jobs.

“The defendant and his wife have been feeding at the government’s trough for many, many years,” Kaplan said.

Kaplan also reminded the judge that many families struggle with the demands of caring for an elderly or disabled family member, and that the couple appears to have relatives and friends who could take care of her during the comparatively short prison term.

As Rubin walked back to the podium to hear the judge impose sentence, he smiled reassuringly at his wife and mouthed “It’s going to be OK.” Wasserman-Rubin stared at him and wept.

Wasserman-Rubin resigned as a county commissioner last year just before state prosecutors charged her with seven felonies, alleging she made money by voting in favor of Southwest Ranches town grant applications that her husband wrote. She has pleaded not guilty and said in court Wednesday that the investigation “has taken years off my life.” State prosecutors said Rubin only avoided criminal charges in that case because the statute of limitations, which is different for elected officials, had run out.

Zloch ruled that Rubin’s crime was not an aberration, finding that Rubin engaged in “a continuing scheme to hide” his income and false tax return. And the judge rejected Rubin’s contention that he should receive a lesser punishment because his reputation has been ruined.

“The only person responsible for that is Mr. Rubin,” the judge said.

As the couple left the downtown courthouse, Wasserman-Rubin still appeared distraught and shook her head when asked if she had any comment. Rubin said, “Thank you,” and walked away, propping up his wife with a supportive arm.

Bogenschutz said he will review the case but believes there are “no good-faith grounds” for an appeal of the sentence.

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