European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - August 7, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Tuesday August 7, 1990 the stars and stripes Page 7size, different color for Dollar plan under study to hamper drug dealers Washington up1 a the Greenback could be in for a color change under plans being considered in Congress arid other government circles. Legislation now before the Senate would order the Treasury department to study the possibility of changing the color or size of . Currency to thwart drug dealers and Money launderers who Are draining America of billions of dollars annually ,. Quot i believe it would be devastating to the drug traffickers Quot said sen. Alfonso do Amato r-n.y., who introduced the Money measure in the Senate. You can to just do business As usual. They be been beating the system a do amatos measure is part of broader legislation cracking Down on Money laundering that was approved in july by the banking committee and headed for action by the Senate. The study would focus on the possibility of altering selected denominations of . Currency or Only . Currency in circulation in foreign countries. Donald Regan who was Secretary of the Treasury and White House chief of staff during much of the Reagan admin a Al Capone Chicago apr Al Capone Clad in a Gray double breasted suit White tie and Fedora that put one Eye in Shadow sauntered into the courtroom sunday with a smile on his face and the walk of a Wise Guy. Some 59 years after he took on the internal Revenue service and lost a Oscar face Al was confident of acquittal this time on the tax evasion charges. The Man in the Gray suit was actually Joe Guastaferro a professional actor hired by the american bar association. The group held the mock trial at its annual meeting Here to demonstrate courtroom tactics and answer a tantalizing question Capone seemed cocky. His stable of a a mouthpieces was As Fine As they come. And tax enforcement Laws had undergone changes that might be favourable to a Man in his position. Or As Jill r. Schilow a Washington lawyer and a trial coordinator put it Quot in the old Days if you did no to file a tax return the Mere failure constituted tax evasion. Today however there must be some affirmative act of evasion which Means any conduct that has the Likely effect to mislead or conceal your income to the  the Aba recruited a real Federal judge and jury and lawyers who studied transcripts and evidence from the original 1931 trial. A we Are going to prove to you that while living like a King he never filed taxes never filed a return a said Linda Pence of Indianapolis a government lawyer. A a 12-count indictment charged Capone with Money laundering willingly a Ailine to file a tax return and conspiracy to defraud the i United Stales. The government documented Capone slavish spending from 1924-1929, during which his closets were stuffed with custom tailored suits his Bells fastened with $8,000 Worth of Diamond studded buckles. The average american earned $3,000 a year in the 1920s, a prosecutor said while Capone made about $1 million a year a washing  and failed to pay More than $215,000 in taxes. Thais about $1.5 million by today s standards. Is ration is a Strong Backer of the concept and the drug enforcement administration is actively pursuing such a plan. A a you be got to use every weapon you can to Stop drug traffickers Quot Regan said. A to me the reason that most people go into Selling drugs and dealing in drugs is the profit motive. Anything that you can do to interrupt that profit Chain has to interrupt the drug Chain a Regan estimated the . A underground Economy Quot of drug Money organized crime profits and other a off the books Quot income is about $300 billion annually meaning the government is being deprived of about 5100 billion in taxes per year. The change would be unprecedented paper Money has been Green throughout . History according to the Bureau of printing and engraving. The last major design change came in 1927 with a size reduction and standardization of artwork. The logic behind the proposal is simple virtually All sales of narcotics Are conducted in Cash even wholesale transactions that involve millions of dollars. Due to restrictive currency control Laws in the United states major drug trafficking organizations must Export their illegally gained Money often by smuggling to be deposited a a washed Quot or a a laundered a in a Bank in a country with weak or nonexistent currency controls. The Dea has proposed to Treasury officials that the government Prim two forms of currency one As Legal tender exclusively inside the United states and one As Legal tender exclusively outside the United states said David Wilson who Heads deals anti Money laundering efforts. The two forms would be interchangeable Only at a ,-controlled financial institution meaning drug traffickers could no longer exploit weak currency control Laws in foreign Banks arid smuggled Money would be worthless. A i Hope it will make the american drug Market an additionally unfriendly environment and it Wilt cause traffickers to say a you know Why done to we sell our dope someplace else a Quot Wilson said. Quot they have it their own Way now by being Able to go overseas. 1 want Home court advantage. It s As simple As  Regan s idea is slightly different and would target illegal Cash holdings by drug dealers tax evaders and other criminals. Regan argues the government should print $20, $50 and $100 Bills with a new color on one Side and with a warning of about 10 Days declare the old Bills no longer acceptable As Legal tender. As americans Exchange old Bills for new Banks would keep a record of exchanges Over $1,000, with the information forwarded to the internal Revenue service and other Federal agencies. That would mean that those possessing Hurge amounts of Keasli would either have to legally declare it or Swallow it. A Quot from my Point of View you have to do something sudden and dramatic Quot Regan said. A to change the color Only on one Side i think would do it. Why bother with both sides you d still have the so called Greenback. But you might have a yellow face. Or you might have a Green face and a yellow Back. This does no to have to be one Hue. It does t have to be just Pink or just Blue. It could be a mixture of  Regan acknowledged his plan would inconvenience millions of americans a on the other hand Quot Regan said a i think All of us arc in this drug fight and in this fight against crime and in this fight against tax cheaters. To be in conc men fed by having to take whatever stash of Bills you have to get them exchanged at the Bank in t All that great a  of acquittal ,5?f a for j a v a al1 actor Joe Guastaferro As Al Capone is flanked by from left Davida Rappaport playing his , St Athion Kim Isis bodyguard and Edna Selan Epstein Mother in the re enactment of his 1931 trial fur income tax evasion. The defense contended the Man whose Tommy gun toting toughs lorded Over the Chicago underworld had no taxable income and received Money in the form of gifts and Loans. A the prosecutions key witness was Fred Ries Capone a former bookkeeper. But the defense this Lime around attacked Riesz credibility saying the twice convicted bookkeeper who was deathly afraid of bugs decided to sing like a Bird after sharing his cell with a c1 Lony of cockroaches. The Rev. Patrick Smith a boyhood Friend of Ries and a defense witness later said the bookkeeper was known As someone who  be trusted. The defense a key witness was Lawrence Mattingly scar face alas tax attorney who said he thought Capone earned $75 a week As a dishwasher and that head never noted any lavish spending. In the original trial in 1931, Capone was convicted on five counts of evading income taxes and failing to file lax returns. He was sentenced to 1 1 years in prison and served almost seven years. A verdict was to be rendered later this wee government settles lawsuit Over Glacier death Seward Alaska apr in what May be the first Lime a government has been sued for the movement of a Glacier the United states has agreed to pay the husband of a woman killed when ice Iell on her in Kenai fjords National Park. Thais Grabenauer 59, of Napa Calif died one Day after the june 16, 19h7, Accident during the couples Outing to the spectacular exit Glacier. According to a National Park service investigation mrs. Grabenauer was standing beneath overhanging ice while her husband Ken stepped away to take a photograph. Half a ton of ice broke of and knocked both of them to the ground. Rangers flew mrs. Grabenauer to Anchorage where she died of internal injuries at a Hospital. The lawsuit tiled two years later by Ken Grabenauer charged the Park service with negligence for failing to warn visitors adequately of the hazards of Glacier ice and for failing to erect barriers. Park service officials admitted no liability m the out of court settlement reached in March. Both parties agreed not to disclose the amount of the settlement. One of the main issues in the Case was whether the Park service is responsible Lor warning people and keeping them out of dangerous areas. The Irahena ers were on a driving vacation to Alaska and decided to visit the Glacier on a Lark alter seeing promotional material in Seward that said they could Quot walk up and touch a  the Park service which has placed new warning signs since the Accident claimed those up at the time adequately warned of the dangers of approaching the ice. It also noted that the couple left an established Trail