The Smoking Gun has uncovered yet another gem in Wesley Snipes's "Oops! I failed to pay $38 million to the IRS—but isn't that what the 861 Argument loophole is really there for? It isn't? Well, then, you're all racist!" Trial of the Century, reprinting two character reference letters recently penned by Denzel Washington and Woody Harrelson. (You may recall that Snipes was acquitted of federal tax-fraud and conspiracy charges, but was convicted of a lesser count of failing to file tax returns, punishable by a potential jail term of up to 3 years.)

While Washington's effectively likens Snipes to a tree (but not the Ficus, a genus forever associated with unlawful tax-evasion), it's Harrelson's moving testimonial that managed to lodge a lump in our throats: The actor relays the events of his first professional film gig, on 1986's Wildcats, during which he, Goldie Hawn, and a number of other high-ranking followers of the Nation of Islam first experienced the ugliness of reverse-racism. Before things could get ugly, however, Snipes stepped in to offer a pacifying lecture on Bigotry Throughout The Years. Or something to that effect.

• Woody And Denzel On Wesley [The Smoking Gun]

Tags: celeb jurisprudence | denzel washington | wesley snipes | woody harrelson