- 26 -
the issue of intent to evade tax, it is a fact to be considered
in a trial on the merits. Wright v. Commissioner, 84 T.C. 636,
643-644 (1985). Moreover, petitioner's criminal conviction is
admissible and may be relevant to prove "motive, opportunity,
intent, preparation, plan, knowledge, identity, or absence of
mistake or accident." Fed. R. Evid. 404(b). To be relevant,
evidence must have some "tendency to make the existence of any
fact that is of consequence to the determination of the action
more probable or less probable than it would be without the
evidence." Fed. R. Evid. 401. Although we have found that
respondent failed to prove an underpayment in petitioner's income
taxes for 1985 and 1986, the criminal conviction and plea
agreement are of some relevance to other taxable years at issue
because we have found that the petitioner's evasion scheme
originated in 1980 and continued in succeeding years. See Farber
v. Commissioner, 43 T.C. 407, 421 n.10 modified 44 T.C. 408
(1965); see also Petzoldt v. Commissioner, 92 T.C. 661, 701-702
(1989); McGee v. Commissioner, 61 T.C. 249, 260 (1973), affd. 519
F.2d 1121 (5th Cir. 1975). Even excluding consideration of
petitioner's plea agreement, there is ample evidence in the
record to sustain respondent's determination for each year at
issue, except 1985 and 1986, because respondent has established
petitioner's fraudulent intent for such years by other convincing
evidence.
Page: Previous 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 NextLast modified: May 25, 2011