'Survivor' winner Richard Hatch in jail again

[August 19, 2009]  BOSTON (AP) -- "Survivor" winner Richard Hatch is once again behind bars.

Federal officials arrested Hatch, 48, and took him to a Massachusetts county jail that's used to temporarily hold federal prisoners Tuesday afternoon.

The Barnstable County Sheriff's Office didn't know why Hatch was there, and a federal Bureau of Prisons spokeswoman couldn't immediately be reached early Wednesday. It wasn't clear if Hatch has a lawyer.

Hatch was convicted in 2006 for not paying taxes on the $1 million prize he won on the CBS reality show's first season. He was sentenced to extra prison time for lying on the stand.

Hatch's arrest came three months after he was released into home confinement in Rhode Island and just hours after he spoke publicly for the first time since he got out of federal prison.

In an interview aired on NBC's "Today" show Tuesday, Hatch said he believes the judge in his tax evasion case discriminated against him because he's gay and accused a prosecutor of misconduct.

"I know without question that there are personal issues involved for the prosecutor. I don't know why. The prosecutorial misconduct has been egregious," he said.

In court papers filed earlier this year, Hatch complained of widespread prejudice in the justice system against gay people.

A spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's office said Hatch's claims are baseless, and in a May court filing prosecutors pointed out that Hatch offered no evidence to support a claim that he was prosecuted because he is gay.

Former U.S. Attorney Robert Clark Corrente -- whose office oversaw the case -- told WPRO-AM that Hatch is "delusional." The judge in the case is now retired and could not immediately be reached for comment.

Hatch is due to be released from home confinement on Oct. 7, but he has asked a judge to release him immediately for a variety of reasons, including because he was represented by ineffective lawyers.

He told the "Today" show that he has been financially devastated by his tax case.

[Associated Press; By RODRIQUE NGOWI]

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