Jack S. Morris and Dorothy Morris - Page 18




                                       - 17 -                                         
          submitted mileage logs which list the monthly total of miles                
          driven.                                                                     
               Petitioner failed to meet the stringent requirements of                
          section 274(d).  The mileage log does not contain the date of               
          each trip, nor does the log describe the business place or                  
          purpose of each trip.  Petitioner also did not establish the                
          total use and business use of each vehicle.  The log merely                 
          describes the monthly odometer readings.  The log does not appear           
          to be contemporaneously created, thus reducing its reliability.             
          The mileage log also conflicts with petitioner’s testimony and              
          his mileage statements on his Federal income tax returns for the            
          years at issue.  On his Federal income tax returns, petitioner              
          attributed a business use for the vehicles of 71.12 percent for             
          1996 and 63.74 percent for 1997.  We do not find petitioner’s               
          unsupported self-serving testimony to be credible.  See                     
          Niedringhaus v. Commissioner, 99 T.C. 202, 219-220 (1992);                  
          Tokarski v. Commissioner, 87 T.C. 74, 77 (1986).  Therefore,                
          petitioner is not entitled to deductions for the car and truck              
          expenses.                                                                   
               B. Section 179                                                         
               Petitioner deducted $10,000 in 1997 under section 179 for              
          the purchase of his Ford Mustang.  Section 179(a) provides that a           
          taxpayer may elect to currently deduct the cost of tangible                 
          personal property purchased during the taxable year for use in              






Page:  Previous  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11  12  13  14  15  16  17  18  19  20  Next

Last modified: May 25, 2011