Irwin A. Schiff (born 1928) is a prominent figure in the tax protester A tax protester is someone who refuses to pay a tax on constitutional or legal grounds. Many claim the tax laws are unconstitutional or otherwise invalid. Some refuse to file a tax return or file returns with no income or tax data supplied. Legal commentator Daniel B. Evans has defined tax protesters as people who "refuse to pay taxes or file movement. Schiff is known for writing and promoting literature that claims the United States income tax An income tax is a tax levied on the income of individuals or business . Various income tax systems exist, with varying degrees of tax incidence. Income taxation can be progressive, proportional, or regressive. When the tax is levied on the income of companies, it is often called a corporate tax, corporate income tax, or profit tax. Individual is applied incorrectly. He has lost several civil cases against the federal government and has a record of multiple convictions for various federal tax crimes. Schiff is serving a 13-plus year sentence for tax crimes (with his location listed as the Terre Haute Federal Correctional Institution). His projected release date is 7 October 2016.[1] Irwin Schiff is also the father of stockbroker and US senate The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral United States Congress, the lower house being the House of Representatives. The composition and powers of the Senate and the House are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution . Each U.S state is represented by two senators, regardless of population. Senators serve staggered candidate Peter Schiff Peter David Schiff is an American author, businessman, financial commentator, and was a 2010 Republican primary candidate for the United States Senate.
Background
In 1950, Schiff graduated from the University of Connecticut The University of Connecticut is a public research university in the U.S. state of Connecticut. Founded in 1881 as a land-grant university, UConn serves more than 28,000 students on its six campuses, including nearly 8,000 graduate students in multiple programs with a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting and economics.[2]
After college, Schiff was in the insurance business. In 1968 he testified[3] before the Senate Committee on Banking and Currency in opposition to the removal of gold backing from Federal Reserve Notes A Federal Reserve Note is a type of banknote issued by the Federal Reserve System and is the only type of U.S. banknote that is still produced today. In 1976, he published a book entitled The Biggest Con: How the Government is Fleecing You.[3]
Schiff has a web site named "PayNoIncomeTax.com", which has previously offered his various books for sale. He is featured in Hollywood producer Aaron Russo Aaron Russo was an American entertainment businessman, filmmaker, libertarian political activist, and a 9/11 truth activist. He was best-known for producing Trading Places, Wise Guys, and The Rose. Later in life he created the documentaries Mad as Hell, which calls into question the current state of governmental affairs and America: Freedom to's 2006 film America: Freedom To Fascism America: Freedom to Fascism is a 2006 film by Aaron Russo, which alleges among a variety of claims that income tax is illegal.
Arguments raised by Schiff
Main article: Tax protester arguments Tax protester arguments are a number of objections raised by individuals who deny that a person has a legal obligation to pay a tax for which the United States government has determined that person is liableAmong the arguments raised over the years by Schiff are:
- that no statutory deficiency in Federal income tax can exist until an assessment has been made;
- that no tax assessment can be made unless a tax return has been voluntarily filed;
- that the Internal Revenue Service, in enforcing the income tax, seeks to impose a tax not authorized by the taxing clauses of the United States Constitution;
- that the United States Tax Court The United States Tax Court is a federal trial court of record established by Congress under Article I of the U.S. Constitution, section 8 of which provides that the Congress has the power to "constitute Tribunals inferior to the supreme Court". The Tax Court specializes in adjudicating disputes over federal income tax, generally prior has no jurisdiction over Schiff; and
- that the United States Tax Court is not a court.
These arguments were ruled invalid in Schiff v. Commissioner.[4] Another argument made by Schiff on his web site is: "On the [Form] 1040 IRS tax forms are used by taxpayers and tax-exempt organizations to report financial information to the Internal Revenue Service of the United States. They are used to report income and calculate taxes owed to the federal government of the United States itself [...] you report 'zero' income regardless of how much you received in: wages, commissions, interest, alimony, capital gains or from operating a business. For tax purposes, 'income' only means corporate 'profit.' Therefore, no individual receives anything that is reportable as 'income.'"[5] This argument has been rejected by the lower courts, as well as the United States courts of appeal The United States courts of appeals are the intermediate appellate courts of the United States federal court system. A court of appeals decides appeals from the district courts within its federal judicial circuit, and in some instances from other designated federal courts and administrative agencies.[6]
Other taxpayers have been convicted of federal tax crimes after following Schiff's schemes. See, e.g., United States v. Middleton[7]; United States v. Mosel[8]; United States v. Burdett[9]; and United States v. Heath[10].
Convictions for 1974 and 1975 tax years
Schiff had filed Federal income tax returns through the tax year 1973. For years 1974 and 1975, however, he refused to disclose his income. Instead, he sent unsigned[2] 1040 forms IRS tax forms are used by taxpayers and tax-exempt organizations to report financial information to the Internal Revenue Service of the United States. They are used to report income and calculate taxes owed to the federal government of the United States to the Internal Revenue Service with the title ("U.S. Individual Income Tax Return") changed to read "U.S. Individual Income Confession." Instead of disclosing income, he included assertions of various constitutional rights on the forms, claiming essentially that under the Fourth The Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution is the part of the Bill of Rights which guards against unreasonable searches and seizures. The amendment specifically also requires search and arrest warrants be judicially sanctioned and supported by probable cause. It was adopted as a response to the abuse of the writ of assistance, which is, Fifth The Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which is part of the Bill of Rights, protects against abuse of government authority in a legal procedure. Its guarantees stem from English common law which traces back to the Magna Carta in 1215. For instance, grand juries and the phrase "due process" both trace their origin to the, Sixth The Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution is the part of the United States Bill of Rights which sets forth rights related to criminal prosecutions in federal courts. The Supreme Court has applied the protections of this amendment to the states through the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, Seventh The Seventh Amendment to the United States Constitution, which is part of the Bill of Rights, codifies the right to a jury trial in certain civil trials. Unlike most of the Bill of Rights, the Supreme Court has not incorporated the amendment's requirements to the states under the Fourteenth Amendment, Eighth The Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution is the part of the United States Bill of Rights which prohibits the federal government from imposing excessive bail, excessive fines or cruel and unusual punishments. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that this amendment's Cruel and Unusual Punishment Clause applies to the states. The phrases, Ninth Amendment IX to the United States Constitution, which is part of the Bill of Rights, addresses rights of the people that are not specifically enumerated in the Constitution, Tenth The Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which is part of the Bill of Rights, was ratified on December 15, 1791. The Tenth Amendment restates the Constitution's principle of federalism by providing that powers not granted to the national government nor prohibited to the states by the Constitution of the United States are reserved to, and Thirteenth The Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution officially abolished and continues to prohibit slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime. It was adopted on December 6, 1865, and was then declared in a proclamation of Secretary of State William H. Seward on December 18. It was the first of the Reconstruction Amendments he would not be an "involuntary serf" of the U.S. government. Schiff contended that because Federal Reserve notes were not backed by gold, they were not “income” for purposes of the Federal income tax.[3]
Schiff began conducting seminars on Federal income taxes in 1977. On April 12, 1978, Schiff appeared on the NBC The National Broadcasting Company is an American television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices in Burbank, California. It is sometimes referred to as the "Peacock Network" due to its stylized peacock logo, created originally for color television program The Tomorrow Show Tomorrow is an American late-night television talk show hosted by Tom Snyder. The show aired on NBC from 1973 to 1982 and featured many prominent guests, including Paul McCartney, "Weird Al" Yankovic (in his first televised appearance), Ayn Rand, John Lennon (in his last televised interview), Jerry Garcia, the Grateful Dead, Ken Kesey, with host Tom Snyder Thomas James "Tom" Snyder was an American television personality, news anchor and radio personality best known for his late night talk shows The Tomorrow Show, on the NBC television network in the 1970s and 1980s, and The Late Late Show, on the CBS Television Network in the 1990s.[citation needed], arguing his views on Federal income taxes. Six days after his appearance on The Tomorrow Show, Schiff was charged with willful failure to file tax returns for the years 1974 and 1975.[11] The modified, unsigned 1974 and 1975 forms—with no income information on them—were deemed by the Internal Revenue Service not to be valid Federal income tax returns under 26 U.S.C. The Internal Revenue Code is the main body of domestic statutory tax law of the United States organized topically, including laws covering the income tax (see Income tax in the United States), payroll taxes, gift taxes, estate taxes and statutory excise taxes. The Internal Revenue Code is published as Title 26 of the United States Code (USC), and § 6012. During the resulting trial, a videotape of the television program was shown to the jury. Schiff was convicted on both counts, and appealed his conviction to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.[3]
At the Court of Appeals, the admission of the videotape was ruled unduly prejudicial, the conviction was overturned, and the case was remanded for a new trial. He was convicted a second time for failure to file, and that conviction was affirmed.[12]
Convictions for 1980 through 1982 tax years
In October 1985 Schiff was convicted of tax evasion Tax avoidance is the legal utilization of the tax regime to one's own advantage, to reduce the amount of tax that is payable by means that are within the law. By contrast, tax evasion is the general term for efforts to not pay taxes by illegal means. The term tax mitigation is a synonym for tax avoidance. Its original use was by tax advisors as an[13] with respect to his personal income taxes for years 1980, 1981 and 1982, and willful failure to file[11] a corporate tax return for Irwin A. Schiff, Inc. (a company for which he served as president), and that conviction was affirmed the following year.[14] Schiff was released from the Federal prison system in June 1993. Despite having spent four years in the system, he continued his tax protest related activities.
Civil tax problems for tax years 1979 through 1985
In June 2004, a Federal court ruled that Schiff was liable for over $2 million in taxes, penalties and interest for the years 1979 through 1985. In that case, Schiff's attorney had filed a brief claiming a diminished capacity In criminal law, diminished responsibility is a potential defense by excuse by which defendants argue that although they broke the law, they should not be held criminally liable for doing so, as their mental functions were "diminished" or impaired. The defense's acceptance in American jurisdictions vary considerably. The majority of defense, contending that Schiff had been diagnosed with a chronic, severe delusional disorder relating to his beliefs about the federal income tax system The federal government of the United States imposes a progressive tax on the taxable income of individuals, partnerships, companies, corporations, trusts, decedents' estates, and certain bankruptcy estates. Some state and municipal governments also impose income taxes. The first Federal income tax was imposed during the Civil War, then again in. This was characterized by some opponents of Schiff's beliefs as a claim that those beliefs were the product of a delusion, or even insanity Insanity, craziness or madness is a spectrum of behaviors characterized by certain abnormal mental or behavioral patterns. Insanity may manifest as violations of societal norms, including becoming a danger to themselves and others, though not all such acts are considered insanity. In modern usage insanity is most commonly encountered as an, and that Schiff had willingly allowed his defense counsel to raise such an argument.
Schiff responded to these claims, stating that the diminished capacity defense was an attempt to prevent the Judge from rendering a summary judgment and instead allow a jury A jury is a sworn body of people convened to render an impartial verdict officially submitted to them by a court, or to set a penalty or judgment. Modern juries tend to be found in courts to judge whether an accused person is not guilty or guilty of a crime. (There is no such verdict as 'innocent') trial. Schiff also asserted that this was different from an insanity defense.[15] Schiff, in his statement on the matter, asserted that the judge erred in not putting this question to the jury A jury is a sworn body of people convened to render an impartial verdict officially submitted to them by a court, or to set a penalty or judgment. Modern juries tend to be found in courts to judge whether an accused person is not guilty or guilty of a crime. (There is no such verdict as 'innocent'), and insisted that "(1) no one is required to pay income taxes; (2) the entire federal judiciary is involved in a monumental, criminal conspiracy Tax protester conspiracy arguments are arguments raised by tax protesters who assert that the imposition of the federal income tax in the United States is the result of an illicit conspiracy. These kinds of arguments are distinguished from related constitutional arguments and statutory arguments. Those arguments attempt to show that the income tax to collect income taxes in violation of law." As of November 2006, Schiff continued to state on his internet web site that the U.S. Federal income tax was repealed in the 1950s, and that U.S. officials were engaged in a conspiracy: "Since the income tax was repealed in 1954 when Congress adopted the 1954 Code, it is clear that for 50 years federal judges in conspiracy with U. S. Department of Injustice prosecutors have been illegally and criminally prosecuting people for crimes that do not exist in connection with a tax that nobody owes."[16]
Case regarding The Federal Mafia
The Federal Mafia is a book written in prison[17] by Schiff. In the book, Schiff contended that the income tax An income tax is a tax levied on the income of individuals or business . Various income tax systems exist, with varying degrees of tax incidence. Income taxation can be progressive, proportional, or regressive. When the tax is levied on the income of companies, it is often called a corporate tax, corporate income tax, or profit tax. Individual system and Internal Revenue Service The Internal Revenue Service is the revenue service of the United States federal government. The agency is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and is under the immediate direction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue. The IRS is responsible for collecting taxes and the interpretation and enforcement of the IRC (Internal Revenue Code) were illegal. On August 9, 2004, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts: upheld an injunction An injunction is an equitable remedy in the form of a court order, whereby a party is required to do, or to refrain from doing, certain acts. The party that fails to adhere to the injunction faces criminal or civil penalties and may have to pay damages or accept sanctions for failing to follow the court's order. In some cases, breaches of issued by a U.S. District Court in Nevada under 26 U.S.C. The Internal Revenue Code is the main body of domestic statutory tax law of the United States organized topically, including laws covering the income tax (see Income tax in the United States), payroll taxes, gift taxes, estate taxes and statutory excise taxes. The Internal Revenue Code is published as Title 26 of the United States Code (USC), and § 7408 against Irwin Schiff and associates Cynthia Neun and Lawrence Cohen, against the sale of this book by those persons.[18] This prohibition does not extend to other sellers of the book. The court rejected Schiff's contention on appeal The specific procedures for appealing, including even whether there is a right of appeal from a particular type of decision, can vary greatly from country to country. Even within a jurisdiction, the nature of an appeal can vary greatly depending on the type of case that the First Amendment The First Amendment to the United States Constitution is part of the Bill of Rights. The amendment prohibits the making of any law "respecting an establishment of religion", impeding the free exercise of religion, infringing on the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering with the right to peaceably assemble protects sales of the book, as the court found that the information it contains is fraudulent The specific legal definition varies by legal jurisdiction. Fraud is a crime, and also a civil law violation. Defrauding people or entities of money or valuables is a common purpose of fraud, but there have also been fraudulent "discoveries", e.g. in science, to gain prestige rather than immediate monetary gain.[19]
Schiff, Neun and Cohen are currently barred under the preliminary injunction A preliminary injunction, in equity, is an injunction entered by a court prior to a final determination of the merits of a legal case, in order to restrain a party from going forward with a course of conduct or compelling a party to continue with a course of conduct until the case has been decided. If the case is decided against the party that has from selling or advertising material advocating nonpayment of tax, preparing a tax return Tax returns in the United States are reports filed with the Internal Revenue Service or with the state or local tax collection agency (California Franchise Tax Board, for example) containing information used to calculate income tax or other taxes for others, and from otherwise providing assistance or encouragement to others in violating tax law. Schiff and his associates are additionally required to provide a copy of the injunction to each of their customers, to post it on their website, and to provide the government with a customer list.[20]
Schiff and his associates have responded by giving the book for free on their website.[21]
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Thu, 12 Aug 2010 08:29:04 GMT+00:00
Sydney Morning Herald Irwin Schiff was one of those that did. Whatever you thought about his ideas - and the octogenarian is serving a 13-year sentence for tax crimes - How an ...
Fri, 30 Mar 2007 00:59:06 PDT
fresh perspective from the very intelligent Pete Hendrickson ... tax taxes taxation IRS IRC government ed brown federal courts cracking the code ... youtube.com.
