Douglas Michael Riley - Page 5




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               There is no authority for treating a nonviable fetus as                
          “property” for purposes of section 165(c)(3)--a proposition in              
          support of which petitioner has advanced no argument.                       
          Petitioner’s claim is frivolous for two additional reasons.                 
          First, a casualty loss deduction may be taken only for the                  
          taxable year in which the loss was sustained, and a theft loss              
          deduction may be taken only for the taxable year in which the               
          taxpayer discovers the theft.  See sec. 1.165-7(a)(1), Income Tax           
          Regs.; sec. 165(e).  As petitioner’s former wife terminated her             
          pregnancy in the mid-1970's, and as petitioner has presented no             
          evidence suggesting that he did not discover his wife’s actions             
          until nearly 20 years later, petitioner’s deductions for the                
          years 1992 through 1995 are untimely.  Second, petitioner has not           
          sought to prove or otherwise justify the amounts deducted, which            
          roughly correspond with his gross income for each of the years in           
          issue.  As petitioner bears the burden of proof with respect to             
          these amounts, petitioner’s claim must fail.  See Rule 142(a).              
          Accordingly, we sustain respondent’s disallowance of the                    
          casualty/theft losses claimed by petitioner.                                
          2.  Liability for Additions to Tax Under Section 6651(a)(1)                 
               Additions to tax under section 6651(a)(1) apply in the case            
          of failure to file timely tax returns, unless the failure is due            
          to reasonable cause.  An addition equals 5 percent of the amount            
          required to be shown as tax on the return for each month or                 






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