As we understand this law suit, the defendants Paul Doughty, Bill Grissom and Altus Venture are being sued for damages based on the claim the defendants invested in the business for the purposes of profiting from Oklahoma tax credits. In so doing their actions destroyed the business.

The claims in this case if they prevail would demonstrate how the tax credit program is having the exact opposite effect, i.e., destroying rather than creating business.

These claims along with other information we have found suggest there is a second part to the scam that uses vendor billing embezzlement schemes to defraud the original business venture owners of their assets.

The plaintiff is in a very difficult position and is gutsy to take on a man who is president of one of the largest banks in SW Oklahoma, First State Bank of Altus. The bank has been in his family from the time the bank was chartered approximately 100 years ago.

IN THE DISTRICT COURT AND FOR JACKSON COUNTY
STATE OF Oklahoma

Plaintiff			)
	Keith Sands		)
			)		Case No. CJ-2007-191
Defendants			)
	Altus Venture, LLC		)
	Bill Grissom		)
	Paul Doughty		)

RESPONSE TO MOTION TO DISMISS
OR ALTERNATIVE, A MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT

COME NOW the plaintiff, Keith Sands, and enter a special appearance for the purpose of requesting that the defendant's motion to dismiss, or in the alternative, a Motion for Summary Judgment, be denied and the plaintiff be granted the opportunity to meet the defendants in court.

The plaintiff disputes the claims presented by the defendant, and intends to prove that the defendants are now simply playing an Oklahoma LLC shell game to receive a tax credit profit and avoid responsibility for their actions, and for that purpose the plaintiff presents the following brief.

BRIEF

Bill Grissom told the plaintiff on several occasions that he, Bill Grissom was putting up $20,000 of his own money to purchase part of EZ-Way Equipment, LLC and that Paul Doughty was personally putting up $20,000 of his own money, and that Altus Capital Partners, LLC, which is managed by Altus Venture, LLC, which is managed by Paul Doughty, put up $20,000. The fact that they ran the money through another LLC is very relevant and extremely important to the plaintiff's claims and should not exclude them from responsibility for their actions, which have cause great financial and emotional damage to the plaintiff.

If Paul Doughty and Bill Grissom were not partners in EZ-Way Equipment, LLC, directly, or indirectly, then Bill Grissom lied to the plaintiff on many occasions about where the money was coming from to buy 50% of EZ-Way Equipment LLC, and exactly who the partners were. Bill Grissom continually referred to himself and Paul Doughty as the plaintiff's partners.

Even before the Operating Agreement was signed, Bill Grissom talked about the tax credit program and that EZ-Way Equipment, LLC needed to take advantage of the tax credit incentives available. He also made it very clear that getting a state tax credit was one of his priorities. He discussed the Oklahoma State Tax Credit with the plaintiff on at least six occasions, several times in front of witnesses. Mr. Grissom implied that the plaintiff would benefit someway from the tax credit.

The plaintiff has since discovered that the tax credit Mr. Grissom was referring to was a loophole in the Oklahoma State Tax Laws, which at that time allowed Capital Investment Companies to use some creative financing to receive a two for one, or even a five for one tax credit by using several LLC's to play a financial shell game with the state tax credit laws. As a result of the short sighted law, the investors could guarantee a profit and actually sell their tax credits to the highest bidder, even if the LLC's they invested in failed miserably, and all under a very suspicious anonymity allowed by the law. Initially, the plaintiff's actions may have been legal unless, they used collusion, deception and manipulation to make their shell game work and/or have falsified documents to cover up their greedy scheme.

The only persons who benefited from the tax credit loophole were the unethical investors who prayed on the Oklahoma Taxpayers and the creative accounting CPAs who were running the shell game.

Furthermore, according to the Exhibit presented by the defendant, which is the EZ-Way Equipment, LLC, Operating Agreement, the managers and members are indemnified against judgments and settlements, unless:

a) the breach of the Manager's duty of loyalty to the company or its members, however, Bill Grissom and Paul Doughty were disloyal to the plaintiff from before the Operating Agreement was signed by deciding to make a tax credit profit off of EZ-Way Equipment, LLC even if it meant making decisions very damaging to marketability and profitability of EZ-Way Equipment, LLC. The defendants further breached the operating agreement by totally ignoring the plaintiff repeated communications. When the plaintiff appealed in person to Paul Doughty concerning these matters Doughty refused to talk to the plaintiff, and said Bill Grissom was totally in charge of all decisions for EZ-Way Equipment, LLC. and had full approval of the manager, Paul Doughty.

b) an act or omission not in good faith, or which involves intentional misconduct, however, Bill Grissom repeatedly misled the plaintiff about many issues, including the state tax credit, and he also made false statements about design flaws which he used as the reason to windup the EZ-Way Equipment, LLC.

c) a transaction in which the manager derived an improper personal benefit, however, the plaintiff intends uncover the financial shell game and prove that the defendants, and/or their financial partners, did in fact make a profit at the expense and loss of the plaintiff, and that their "it wasn't me defense" is only a part of the giant shell game that has bilked over $100,000,000 from the Oklahoma taxpayers.

The plaintiff submits several news paper and magazine articles about the tax credit scam and an official statement made by Gov. Brad Henry concerning abuses of the tax credit program and the need to have the loophole fixed, and also several about Paul Doughty and Altus Venture, LLC, as to show a history of making a unethical tax credit profit at the expense of others.

There is currently an ongoing investigation into possible wrong doing by some high level state officials by their aiding some of Oklahoma's richest citizens to profit from a loophole in the Oklahoma tax law.

CONCLUSION

We request the opportunity to add that the name of Altus Capital Partners, LLC and it's manager, Paul Doughty, and it's partners and member, Bill Grissom and all it's other partners, members, owners or investors in Altus Capital Partners, LLC be added as defendants in this action. We request that you deny the motion to dismiss, or an alternative Summary Judgment and we further request that the plaintiff be granted his day in court and the opportunity to question the defendants and their employees concerning the state tax credit and exactly who was getting it.

To such an end we will be requesting subpoenas for the following people;

Note: The names of the witness have been removed out of respect for their privacy.

Signed this 14th day of June, 2007

________________________
Keith Sands, plaintiff

Certificate of Mailing

I, Keith Sands, hereby certify that a true and correct copy of the above foregoing instrument was mailed on the 15th day of June 2007, with proper postage fully prepaid thereon, on the date of the filing herein to:

Altus Capital Partners, LLC
120 West Broadway
Altus, OK 73521

Altus Venture, LLC
120 West Broadway
Altus, OK 73521

Bill Grissom
120 West Broadway
Altus, OK 73521

Paul Doughty
C/O First State Bank
721 North Main
Altus, OK 73521

Philip L. Nelson, OBA #11942
Latham, Nelson & Associates, PLLC
P.O. Box 953

1000 N. Main
Altus, OK 73522

Attorney for Defendants

___________________
Floyd Keith Sands

Copyright 2007 - 2024 ProwlingOwl.com   See disclosures   Email: taxwatch@prowlingowl.com.