George W. Lewis v. United States

Lewis was indicted in three counts for attempting willfully and knowingly to de feat and evade income taxes by filing in each instance a false and fraudulent return: (1) understating his income in the amount of $187,817.22 for the year 1947, the return showing a tax due of $2,018.10 when actually $145,761.90 was due, (2) understating the income of his wife for the same year by $185,757.38, the return showing $2,884.55 due, whereas $146,-189.40 was actually due, and (3) understating income and taxes of husband and wife for the year 1948, the return setting forth an income of $115,153.66 and a tax due of $53,113.62, while the true income was $308,099.51 and the tax due thereon $199,834.82.

The trial was before a jury. Defendant made various motions, the gist of all of which is that the government had not proved its case’by evidence relevant to net worth and expenditures. The government introduced evidence tending to prove income by showing that defendant had spent, invested or loaned $1,604,-«08.71 from 1942 to 1948, and that he had available from earnings, gifts, repayment of loans and all other disclosed sources a total of $771,615.65 during these same years. There was also…