Thomas D. Selgas v. United States

i QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW Thomas Selgas was indicted for the second offense in 26 U.S.C. §7201, i.e., evasion of the payment of taxes and for defrauding the United States conspiracy under 18 U.S.C. §371. The indictment covered two periods of time, the years 1998-2002 and the year 2005. The Supreme Court in Sansone v. United States, 380 U.S. 343, 351 (1965) listed the elements required to prove a violation of 26 U.S.C. §7201. They were “willfulness; the existence of a tax deficiency, ... and an affirmative act constituting an evasion or attempted evasion of the tax.” Id. The Circuit courts have been divided as to what the term actually means. Such divisions have resulted in Circuit court decisions that are confusing. Some of which are even contrary to the original intent of Sansone. The Petitioner requests the Supreme Court to revisit the term “existence of a tax deficiency” and redefine a “tax due and owing” as an essential element of §7201. Making a “tax due and owing” an element is consistent with all of Title 26 and would prevent convictions of persons who had no “tax due and owing,” or where the government failed to prove a “tax due and owing.” The questions presented are:

1. Whether a person charged with only evasion of the payment of taxes under 26 U.S.C. §7201 can be convicted, when there is no tax due and owing.

2. Whether a person can be convicted of conspiracy to defraud the IRS under 18 U.S.C. §371, when there is no tax due and owing.