Winston Knauss - Page 35

                                       - 35 -                                         
               A similar result obtains with respect to the Sir Winston II.           
          Respondent’s analysis of the two checking accounts and one                  
          brokerage account held by petitioner during the 1-year period               
          following his acquisition of the Sir Winston II concluded that              
          petitioner could not have expended more than $72,315 from these             
          sources for capital improvements to that vessel.  Upon review of            
          respondent’s analysis, we conclude that five additional checks              
          that were not treated by respondent as possible capital                     
          improvements expenditures should have been so treated.  Those               
          checks include two checks to “Costco” totaling $1,901, two checks           
          to “Henry Lee Co.” totaling $2,226, and a check to “Weaver &                
          Weaver, P.A.” for $2,905.  We conclude that the payees on these             
          checks do not provide a sufficient basis to exclude them as                 
          possible expenditures for capital improvements.  The total of the           
          foregoing additional checks is $7,032, which when added to                  
          respondent’s calculation brings the total of possible capital               
          expenditures from petitioner’s checking and brokerage accounts to           

               22(...continued)                                                       
          builder had completed it.  Nonetheless, a marine survey conducted           
          3 days before petitioner took possession found that the vessel              
          was 95 percent complete, and a U.S. Coast Guard certificate of              
          inspection, qualified by minor deficiencies, was issued at the              
          same time.  Moreover, petitioner settled his lawsuit against the            
          builder for $65,000, a figure that is inconsistent with the claim           
          that expenditures exceeding $500,000 were required to complete              
          the Sir Winston after petitioner took possession.  Thus, we do              
          not believe that the somewhat unfinished state of the Sir Winston           
          when petitioner took possession can account for the remainder of            
          the $527,074 in claimed, but unsubstantiated, capital                       
          improvements.                                                               





Page:  Previous  23  24  25  26  27  28  29  30  31  32  33  34  35  36  37  38  39  40  41  42  Next

Last modified: May 25, 2011