Susan L. Castle - Page 10




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          Petitioner had no reason to believe that any tax obligation                 
          resulting from the filing of the return would not be paid by                
          Roger L. Castle.”  In support of that contention, petitioner                
          testified that she did not even know that the 1993 joint return             
          showed tax due of $23,457 because she was “hurried” when she                
          signed it.6  Petitioner’s testimony that she did not know that              
          the 1993 joint return showed tax due of $23,457 is belied by her            
          testimony that she believed the 1993 joint return to be true and            
          correct when she signed it.7  We are not required to, and we                
          shall not, rely on petitioner’s testimony to establish that she             
          had no knowledge or reason to know that the tax due shown in the            
          1993 joint return would not be paid.  See Geiger v. Commissioner,           
          440 F.2d 688, 689-690 (9th Cir. 1971), affg. per curiam T.C.                
          Memo. 1969-159; Tokarski v. Commissioner, 87 T.C. 74, 77 (1986).            



               6In this connection, petitioner testified as follows regard-           
          ing the circumstances surrounding her signing of the 1993 joint             
          return:                                                                     
               I [petitioner] was at work and Mr. Castle called me and                
               said that I had to meet him at the accountant’s immedi-                
               ately, to get there as quickly as possible, that I had                 
               to sign this return, that they were closing.  So I ran                 
               in the door.  It was a small firm.  They laid the sheet                
               in front of me.  I signed the paper, they stuck it in                  
               an envelope, and we left.                                              
               7Moreover, by signing the 1993 joint return petitioner is              
          charged with constructive knowledge of, inter alia, the tax due             
          shown in that return.  See Park v. Commissioner, 25 F.3d 1289,              
          1299 (5th Cir. 1994), affg. T.C. Memo. 1993-252; see also Hayman            
          v. Commissioner, 992 F.2d 1256, 1262 (2d Cir. 1993), affg. T.C.             
          Memo. 1992-228.                                                             





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