Green going to prison

A former Idaho state representative from Kootenai County will serve time in prison for his role in a decade-long tax dodging scheme.

John O. Green, of Rathdrum, was sentenced this week to six months in federal prison for tax evasion and conspiracy to defraud the United States.

The charges were punishable by a maximum of five years in prison.

U.S. District Judge Karen Gren Scholer also ordered Green to serve three years of supervised probation and to pay nearly $680,000 in restitution to the United States after his release.

Green was indicted by the U.S. government in 2018 for his part in helping a Texas couple avoid paying taxes for a decade.

Prosecutors said Thomas Selgas and his wife owed more $1.1 million in taxes, which Selgas refused to pay.

When the Internal Revenue Service tried to collect the outstanding taxes, Selgas reportedly turned to his longtime lawyer, Green, who was licensed to practice in Texas.

From 2007 to 2017, Selgas deposited funds — primarily from the sale of gold coins — into a legal trust Green managed.

Green then used the trust to pay the couple’s personal expenses.

That activity concealed Selgas’s income from the IRS and thwarted its ability to identify the funds he possessed, prosecutors said.

Green also filed a false tax return on behalf of a company owned by Selgas.

Green has previously accused the federal government of targeting him because he has litigated many cases involving the IRS.

A Texas jury deliberated for about three hours before finding Green guilty in January 2020.

Co-defendant Selgas was also convicted on tax fraud and conspiracy charges.

Selgas was sentenced to 18 months in prison and three years of probation. He must also pay $1.3 million in restitution.

His wife, Michelle Selgas, was also charged with conspiracy and tax evasion. She was acquitted.

At the time of his conviction, Green was in his first term representing District 2 House seat B.

Though Green said he planned to return to the Idaho Statehouse and finish his term, his fellow House members voted 65-0 to vacate his seat shortly after the conviction.

A person convicted of a felony loses the rights to vote, to sit on a jury and to run for office.

In Idaho, these rights are restored automatically upon completion of any period of imprisonment, parole or probation.

The Idaho Legislative Services Office said it was the first time a lawmaker had been expelled from the Legislature.

Green, who has not voluntarily filed a tax return since 2000, unsuccessfully ran for Kootenai County Sheriff in 2012 and 2016, losing both times to Ben Wolfinger.

He attempted to run for the position again in 2020, declaring his intent to do so about two months after his conviction.

Green’s filing was received but not accepted by the Kootenai County Clerk’s Office.

•••

Ralph Bartholdt and Craig Northrup contributed to this report.