U.S. v. Upton, 85-2295
| Decision Date | 27 August 1986 |
| Docket Number | No. 85-2295,85-2295 |
| Parties | -5654, 86-2 USTC P 9694 UNITED STATES of America, Appellee, v. Glenn Harrod UPTON, Appellant. |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Eighth Circuit |
Glenn Harrod Upton, Leavenworth, Kan., for appellant.
Guy Cook, Des Moines, Iowa, for appellee.
Before HEANEY, WOLLMAN, and MAGILL, Circuit Judges.
Glenn H. Upton appeals from a final judgment entered in the district court * upon a jury verdict finding him guilty of two counts of willfully failing to file income tax returns for the years 1980 and 1981 in violation of 26 U.S.C. Sec. 7203. The court sentenced Upton to a one-year term of imprisonment on the first count, suspended execution of a one-year sentence on the second count, and placed Upton on probation for three years following completion of his term of imprisonment on the condition that he obey all local, state and federal laws, including those requiring the timely filing of valid tax returns.
During 1980 and 1981, Upton was employed by the Burlington Northern Railroad and received gross income in excess of $36,000 and $38,000, respectively. In November of 1982, representatives of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) visited Upton's home, informed him that a criminal investigation was proceeding, and read Upton his Miranda rights. The following month, Upton submitted Forms 1040 for the years in question in which he indicated in each blank space a specific objection grounded in the fifth amendment privilege against self-incrimination. Additionally, on each form Upton stated, and "I, Glenn H. Upton, do have a grievance with the IRS ... I would go so far as to admit that if the IRS would prosecute me it may be the first thing they have done right in service to me."
Upton was subsequently charged with willful failure to file a tax return pursuant to 26 U.S.C. Sec. 7203. Prior to trial, the court determined that the Forms 1040 submitted by Upton were not valid returns within the meaning of the law because they did not contain sufficient information to enable the IRS to calculate Upton's tax liability. The court's instructions to the jury expressly reflected the court's determination on this issue.
On appeal, Upton's appointed attorney filed an Anders brief and was allowed to withdraw. Anders v. California, 386 U.S. 738, 87 S.Ct. 1396, 18 L.Ed.2d 493 (1967). In the brief, counsel raises three arguments in support of Upton's appeal: 1) that the district court erred in finding that the forms submitted by Upton were not legally valid returns; 2) that the government failed to establish that Upton's failure to file tax returns was willful; and 3) that the district court's jury instruction on willfulness was, therefore, improper. Each of these contentions lacks merit.
In United States v. Grabinski, 727 F.2d 681, 683 (8th Cir.1984), this court upheld the conviction of a defendant who filed a Form 1040 containing objections based on the fourth and fifth amendments and only bottom-line assertions as to the amount of his taxable income. The court applied the "sufficient financial circumstances" test to determine the validity of the tax return for section 7203 purposes. Id. at 686-87. The same test was articulated and applied by the...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
Terrell v. Internal Revenue Serv. (In re Terrell)
...years before and after the years in question, is probative of a taxpayer's willfulness and intent to evade taxes. United States v. Upton, 799 F.2d 432, 433 (8th Cir. 1986). The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals has held that consistent understatement of income with consequent underpayment of t......
-
Davis v. United States
...occurred after the indicted acts were admissible in tax evasion prosecution to show intent and absence of mistake); United States v. Upton, 799 F.2d 432, 433 (8th Cir. 1986) ("Evidence of [defendant's] questionable compliance with tax laws, both in the years prior to and subsequent to [the ......
-
Richardson v. C.I.R.
...IRS investigation as evidence of fraud and distinguishing cases where "the taxpayer had cooperated fully"); see also United States v. Upton, 799 F.2d 432, 433 (8th Cir.1986) ("Evidence of [a taxpayer's] questionable compliance with tax laws, both in the years prior to and subsequent to [the......
-
U.S. v. Daraio
...prosecution to show intent and absence of mistake when defense based on defendant's reliance on advice of friend); United States v. Upton, 799 F.2d 432, 433 (8th Cir.1986) ("Evidence of [defendant's] questionable compliance with tax laws, both in the years prior to and subsequent to [the ye......