DES MOINES – A Polk County judge today sentenced Nebraska film and video producer Dennis Brouse to 10 years in prison for his role in the Iowa Film Office tax credit fraud case.
Brouse, 61, of Plattsmouth, Neb., produced and starred in the public television and DVD series “Saddle Up with Dennis Brouse,” a program that featured Brouse training difficult horses. Brouse, owner of “Changing Horse Productions,” applied for Iowa tax credits through the state’s film tax credit program, and Attorney General Tom Miller alleged Brouse made false statements in his application.
From March 2008 through September 2009, Changing Horses applied for and received expenditure and investment tax certificates for five separate projects. According to a state audit, the state issued excess tax credit certificates totaling $9,179,102 for Changing Horses projects.
In March a Polk County jury convicted Brouse of first-degree fraudulent practices (a Class C felony) and acquitted him of first-degree theft and ongoing criminal conduct.
At Brouse’s sentencing, Assistant Attorney General Rob Sand argued in court, “Fraud is not an impulsive crime. It is carefully planned, and only by punishing it with imprisonment can we possibly deter other would-be fraudsters from following through on their own plans.”
District Court Judge Scott Rosenberg noted that Brouse’s premeditation, and the fact that Brouse has not shown remorse or accepted responsibility for his role, warranted prison time.
In May 2011, 46-year-old Minnesota filmmaker Wendy Runge also was sentenced in Polk County District Court to 10 years in prison after being convicted of defrauding the film office to obtain the department’s film tax credit and increasing the budget for her independent film “The Scientist” by $3.5 million.
Newton Mayor Chaz Allen was subpoenaed to testify by Runge’s defense in February after Allen had met with the filmmaker in 2009 to discuss turning the Maytag Plant 2 into a sound stage and studio for movies she was producing in Iowa.
Another case in the film office scandal is scheduled to see trial next month. Chad Witter, 38, of Bettendorf, primary accountant for Changing Horses and a tax credit broker for several film projects, is charged with five felonies, including ongoing criminal conduct, two counts of first-degree fraud and two counts of first-degree theft. Witter’s trial is scheduled to begin July 23.
A criminal charge is merely an accusation and defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.