Retired NFL Player, now a Claimant’s Attorney, Pleads Guilty to Tax Fraud
NFL Great Ron Mix played professional football for the San Diego Chargers and the Oakland Raiders before he retired to become a plaintiff’s attorney. Eventually his practice focused on representing professional athletes who wanted to file workers’ compensation claims. He is a former All American and a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. But now Mix faces up to three years in federal prison after pleading guilty in Missouri to a felony tax-fraud charge stemming from the way he obtained referrals for his workers’ compensation cases.
Former San Diego Chargers great Ron Mix, a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, pleaded guilty Monday in federal court in Missouri to a tax fraud charge stemming from his post-football career as a workers compensation lawyer.
Mix, 78, faces a potential sentence of three years in prison and $250,000 fine, but his lawyer said he could end up being placed on probation instead.
A former offensive lineman who played for the Chargers from 1960 to 1969 and then two years for the Oakland Raiders, Mix has been a successful workers compensation lawyers since his retirement from the game. Many of his clients are former professional athletes who made claims for injuries suffered during their playing days, usually years after their careers ended.
Federal prosecutors said that Mix got referrals for clients from a non-lawyer, who is not identified in court records. He would then file claims on behalf of those clients.
In return, Mix donated to a charity called Project Contact Africa that was designated by the non-lawyer who gave him referrals, identified in court papers only as “Individual F.” From 2010 to 2013 Mix donated $155,000 to the charity.
Before the case went to trial, Tractor Supply Company, the parent company of Tractor Supply Company of Texas, settled for $3.5 million. The San Diego Union Tribune and Reuters both have the story.
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