Hans C. Sherrer - Page 26




                                        -26-                                          
               Finally, petitioner has not asserted he was acting under a             
          good-faith belief that his nonfiling for the years in issue was             
          permitted by law.  Cf. Cheek v. United States, 498 U.S. 192                 
          (1991).  The existence of any such belief is belied by the                  
          admissions in his 1980 letter.                                              
               The foregoing evidence clearly and convincingly proves that            
          petitioner's failure to file a return for each of the years 1989-           
          92 constituted a willful, intentional violation of a known legal            
          duty.  In addition, under the circumstances of this case,                   
          petitioner's repeated and prolonged failure to file returns is              
          strong and persuasive evidence that petitioner, by not filing               
          returns for 1989-92, intended fraudulently to evade taxes owed              
          for those years, by concealing his income and assets from the               
          Commissioner.  See Stoltzfus v. United States, supra; Powell v.             
          Granquist, supra.                                                           
                    2.  Other Evidence of Fraud                                       
               There is substantial evidence, in addition to petitioner's             
          history of nonfiling, that the underpayments in petitioner's                
          taxes for 1989-92 were due to fraud.                                        
               First, petitioner was responsible for the recordkeeping of             
          his plumbing business.  In each of the years in issue, petitioner           
          did not maintain, as books and records, invoices, receipts for              
          cash disbursements, a general ledger, a cash receipts journal, or           
          a cash disbursements journal.  Taxpayers are required to maintain           
          adequate records.  See sec. 6001.  Under the circumstances of               
          this case, we find that petitioner's maintenance of inadequate              



Page:  Previous  16  17  18  19  20  21  22  23  24  25  26  27  28  29  30  31  32  33  34  35  Next

Last modified: May 25, 2011