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legitimate authority over petitioners’ lives and property, they
should not be required to comply with respondent’s requests for
discovery. We again point out that petitioners filed returns
reporting items of income and deduction. Section 7602(a)(1)
establishes the Secretary’s authority to examine a taxpayer’s
books and records to determine the correctness of any return.
Clearly, Ms. Sluyter knew that when she signed the motion. We
say that because respondent has brought to our attention another
proceeding in which Ms. Sluyter represented tax-protesters
challenging the Commissioner’s summons enforcement action. That
proceeding, Zimmerman v. United States, 85 AFTR 2d 2000-1091;
2000-1 USTC par. 50,295 (E.D. Cal. 2000), involves findings and
recommendations submitted by U.S. Magistrate Judge O’Neill to the
Hon. Anthony W. Ishii, Judge, U.S. District Court for the Eastern
District of California. In his findings and recommendations (all
of which are adverse to the Zimmermans), Magistrate Judge O’Neill
states that, under section 7602(a)(1), to ascertain the
correctness of any return, the “Secretary is authorized to
examine ‘any books, papers, records, or other data which may be
relevant or material’ for IRS inquiry”.10 Id. Moreover,
10 In Zimmerman v. United States, 86 AFTR 2d 2000-7027,
2000-2 USTC par. ___ (E.D. Cal. 2000), Judge Ishii imposed
sanctions against Ms. Sluyter under Fed. R. Civ. P. 11 for tax-
protester type arguments that she had advanced in the proceeding
discussed in the text and in a related, subsequent proceeding.
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