I had Oscar Stilley on my radio program a couple of times. I’d heard him on a couple of podcasts and liked his ‘fire.’ He was an attorney who was wrongfully disbarred. More than that, he served 10-years in federal prison.
What’s not to like? A high-intensity smart guy who’s not afraid to buck the system and fight for the little guy against the big-bad IRS.
To top that off, he wrote the book, Busting the Feds. It’s a free download on his website. I read it then bought a paper copy. I pimped the book on my radio show several times.
The saga.
Upon release, the feds and court wanted him to install computer monitoring software, as if he were a sex-crime convict. He fought them and ended up re-caged for a few months and released. He was forced to install the monitoring software.
His telling was that he is dangerous to the system, and they want to know what he types (real-time). That would include who he was preparing legal documents for. Not good for a disbarred attorney.
But why shame on me (and Oscar)?
As Oscar says in interviews, podcasts, and such, he was a high-profile tax attorney defending Lindsey Springer against criminal charges by the IRS.
He explained that he was beating them so badly that they ginned-up money-laundering charges and then prosecuted him with his client.
Twelve-years later, he is still fighting his original conviction, saying he never had a proper appeal.
I believed him. After all, he was a victim.
Once he was released, Oscar filed a couple of lawsuits seeking legal notoriety and the attention of the press.
To file a case in the Texas SB-8 abortion brouhaha, Oscar realize that only registered voters could file actions to claim the $10,000 prize. So, taking the position that he was not “lawfully” convicted a more than a decade prior, he registered to vote in Arkansas. He informed the state that he was not a “fully”-convicted felon, given he has not had an appeal.
Well, what do you know, another felony charge.
This caused his two-year probation to be yanked, and back in a cage he went.
He would call or send me limited email messages, and I was given access to his personal email to stay on top of things and keep him informed. I was his electronic lifeline and typist.
He would send un-formatted text or dictate wording to turn into legal documents and file electronically.
You ask again, where is the shame?
For this, we need to go back to the story. Oscar claims he was not money-laundering because the money at issue was his client’s money (Springer’s) and that as an attorney he had to do as instructed by Springer.
Per Brave AI:
An IOLTA (Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Account) is a pooled, interest-bearing trust account used by attorneys to hold client funds that are too small or held too briefly to earn net interest for the individual client after bank fees and administrative costs.
Unlike standard trust accounts where interest benefits the client, the interest generated by IOLTA accounts is remitted to state bar foundations to fund legal aid and access-to-justice programs for low-income individuals.
I understood the general nature of these accounts, so Oscar’s story seemed to wash until . . . I saw a continuing legal education program named something like: Avoid Legal Ethics Pitfalls With IOLTA Accounts.
My goal was to figure out how they conjured (fabricated, in his words) the criminal charges. Down the rabbit-hole I went. My inquiry turned to shock.
Per Brave AI:
The phrase “the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth“ is a standard legal oath used to swear in witnesses, requiring them to testify accurately, completely, and without embellishment.
You be the judge. Is Oscar lying?
Because of what I learned, I wrote an open-letter to Oscar and copied about a dozen Dept. of Justice prosecutors and attorneys.
Dear Oscar, I am disassociating with you.
Oscar emailed from prison, that he understood my position.
7/6/2026 10:05:59 PM
Update on matters from my end
Dear Bill:
Please let me state that I totally respect your decision. I’m just telling you what’s going on so you can think about things and ‘decide what’s best for yourself.’
The disassociation, part two.
I was rattled, realizing that I had read none of the opening documents where Springer was charged and Oscar was later rolled into the case. So I pulled down the first hundred documents from PACER.
Oscar was not winning, then accused of money-laundering after he was beating them. Rather, he and Springer were co-defendants from the beginning. If you read/skim some of these, you will form your own opinion.
If you read the foregoing, you will grasp the scope of Oscar’s crimes.
I’ve talked with Oscar, listened to his interviews, and read his book. There are several conflicts between what he says and wrote, and what went down in the courts.
Arkansas is a one-party consent state under Ark. Code Ann. § 5-60-120(a): a participant in any wire, landline, oral, telephonic, or wireless communication may record without the other party’s knowledge.
https://www.recordinglaw.com/united-states-recording-laws/one-party-consent-states/arkansas-recording-laws/
My purpose is not to disparage Oscar, but to explain why I am embarrassed.
I should have read the initial charging instruments and affidavits long ago.
In my opinion, Oscar shows no remorse, portrays himself as a victim, and is trying to beat the rap on a technicality.
I wish no harm, but cannot say I wish him luck.
You can download almost all the documents for free at:
https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/4364207/united-states-v-springer/
I paid for many of these pages to be uploaded from PACER to Court Listener.
PS: I remember saying that Oscar was wrong, or wasting his time, with the IRS Paperwork Reduction Act arguments on my radio program.
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