Garcia v. United States

714 F. Supp. 1036, 63 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 918, 1989 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 7331, 1989 WL 71371
CourtDistrict Court, N.D. California
DecidedFebruary 24, 1989
DocketNo. 88-1413 TEH
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 714 F. Supp. 1036 (Garcia v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, N.D. California primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Garcia v. United States, 714 F. Supp. 1036, 63 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 918, 1989 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 7331, 1989 WL 71371 (N.D. Cal. 1989).

Opinion

ORDER

THELTON E. HENDERSON, District Judge.

This matter came before the Court on plaintiffs petition to review termination and jeopardy assessments made by the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) against plaintiff. After a careful consideration of the evidence produced at the hearing and the post-hearing briefs submitted by the parties, the Court finds that the assessments are reasonable and the amount is appropriate. The action of the IRS is, therefore, affirmed.

Background

On January 20, 1988, plaintiff was arrested on bookmaking charges in Sunnyvale, California. In connection with this arrest, numerous bookmaking records were seized by the police. On January 22, 1988, the Internal Revenue Service relied upon these records in making a termination assessment on alleged income tax and a jeopardy assessment on alleged excise tax against plaintiff. After exhausting his administrative remedies, plaintiff brought suit before this Court, pursuant to 26 U.S. C. § 7429(b), for review of the assessments made against him.

Legal Standard

26 U.S.C. § 6851(a) authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury (“the Secretary”) to make a termination assessment against a taxpayer

[i]f the Secretary finds that [the] taxpayer designs ... to conceal himself or his property therein, or to do any other act tending to prejudice or to render wholly or partly ineffectual proceedings to collect the income tax for the current or the preceding taxable year.

26 U.S.C. § 6861 authorizes the Secretary to impose a jeopardy assessment if the Secretary “believes that assessment or col[1037]*1037lection of a deficiency ... will be jeopardized by delay.”

Under 26 U.S.C. § 7429(b)(2), a district court may conduct a de novo review to determine: (A) whether the making of a termination or a jeopardy assessment is reasonable under the circumstances and (B) whether the amount assessed or demanded is appropriate under the circumstances. The government bears the burden of showing that the making of the assessment is reasonable and must provide a written statement of the basis for the amount assessed. The taxpayer, however, assumes the burden of showing that the amount sought is inappropriate. 26 U.S.C. § 7429(g)(1) and (2). “Reasonable under the circumstances” has been liberally construed, for the purposes of § 7429, as something more than “not arbitrary or capricious” but something less than “supported by substantial evidence.” McAvoy v. I.R.S., 475 F.Supp. 297, 299 (W.D.Mich. 1979). A summary disposition of the case is permissible, where there is no factual dispute for resolution at trial. Id. at 298.

Discussion

1. The reasonableness of the assessments

In the present case, the government has established that there was reason to believe that plaintiff was attempting to conceal or transfer his property beyond the government’s reach. First, the IRS established that plaintiff used nominees “to hold” his assets. He placed his rare horses and his vehicle in his daughter’s name and used his daughter’s mailbox, rather than his own, to receive his mail. The evidence also revealed that plaintiff destroyed important records and documents in his efforts to hide his assets.

Moreover, police reports indicated that plaintiff was arrested for bookmaking, that he possessed voluminous betting materials, that he dealt in easily concealable cash, jewelry, and third party checks, and that he purchased his automobile with cash. IRS records also showed that plaintiff has not filed any income tax return for the last several years despite currency transactions showing that he has well over forty thousand dollars ($40,000.00) deposited in the bank.

Simpson v. I.R.S., 573 F.Supp. 146 (M.D. Tenn.1983), upheld the reasonableness of a termination assessment based on similar kinds of facts. There, the taxpayer was allegedly involved in a profitable crime enterprise, possessed large amounts of cash, and failed to file tax returns in the past. Based on this record, the court found that the IRS could reasonably conclude that the taxpayer had concealed and would continue to conceal his assets. Thus, it upheld the government’s termination assessment against him.

The jeopardy assessment imposed on plaintiff is also reasonable under the circumstances present in this case. Here, plaintiff failed to pay his taxes for several years and has lost his main source of income. The government’s chances of recovering taxes owed by him is, therefore, in serious jeopardy. Plaintiff finds himself in a situation that is analogous to the one the taxpayer faced in Breider v. U.S., 614 F.Supp. 1200 (E.D.Wis.1985). In that case, the court held that it was reasonable to make a jeopardy assessment against a taxpayer who failed to report profits from his illegal gambling business and was of questionable solvency because authorities uncovered his secret enterprise and thereby eliminated his source of income. The government’s ability to collect the taxpayer’s liability was, therefore, imperiled, making the IRS action reasonable under the circumstances. Id. at 1201-02.

Given all of the above, the Court finds that the termination and jeopardy assessments made against plaintiff were reasonable.

2. The appropriateness of the amount

Plaintiff has failed to carry his burden of showing that the amount assessed against him is inappropriate. First, plaintiff’s contention that the government did not provide him with the basis for the amount is erroneous. The government produced a written statement containing the information which was used to determine [1038]*1038the amount assessed. See Plaintiffs Trial Brief, Exhibits 3 and 4. The Notice of Termination Assessment of Income Tax (Exhibit 3) and the Notice of Jeopardy Assessment and Right of Appeal (Exhibit 4), which was issued by the IRS to plaintiff, stated that the assessment was computed based on the ledger cards, individual wagering sheets, and other information obtained from plaintiffs residence following his arrest.

Plaintiff also asserts that the amount is inappropriate because the IRS failed to take into account the following factors: a) plaintiff was not the only person engaged in the alleged illegal activities and cannot be held responsible for the income and wagering activity of other individuals; b) many wagers were not paid off by clients who failed or refused to pay or who never paid as a matter of practice because they were primarily used to generate additional business; c) the wagers included “lay-off wagers” (wagers by the bookmaker himself when a particular event is attracting one-sided wagers and becomes too risky for the bookmaker).

Plaintiff introduced into evidence the testimony of Benjamin Bordeaux, a paralegal, who declared that based on his review of the records, plaintiff was not the only person taking wagers or receiving income from the alleged bookmaking activities. Mr.

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Bluebook (online)
714 F. Supp. 1036, 63 A.F.T.R.2d (RIA) 918, 1989 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 7331, 1989 WL 71371, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/garcia-v-united-states-cand-1989.