TAX COURT OPINION

Case: Jaime Sanchez
Docket Number: 8163-08
Judge: Colvin
Opinion Type: bench
Filed: 05/29/2009
Pages: 4

UNITED STATES TAX COURT WASHINGTON , DC 2021 7 JAIME SANCHEZ, V . Petitioner , Docket No . 8163-0 8 COMMISSIONER OF INTERNAL REVENUE , Respondent . ORDER Pursuant to Rule 152(b), Tax Court Rules of Practice and Procedure, it i s ORDERED that the Clerk of the Court shall .transmit herewith to petitioner and to respondent a copy of the pages of the transcript of the trial of this case before Judge Haines at Los Angeles, California on May 13, 2009, containing his oral findings of fact and opinion rendered at the conclusion of the trial . In accordance with the oral findings of fact and opinion, decision will be entered for respondent . (Signed) Harry A. Haines Judge Dated : Washington, D .C . May 29, 2009 SERVED Jun 03 2009 3 1 Bench Opinion by Judge Harry A . Haines May 13, 2009 2 Sanchez v . Commissioner Docket No . 8163-08 3 In this case , Jaime Sanchez was pro se, and Vivian 4 Bodey was the attorney for Respondent . 5 The Court has decided to render. oral findings of 6 fact and opinion in this case , and the following represents 7 the Court's oral findings of fact and opinion . The ora l 8 findings of fact and opinion shall not be relied upon as 9 precedent in any other case . 10 Petitioner filed a petition with this Court in 11 response to a notice of deficiency for 2006 in whic h 12 Respondent determined that petition had a deficiency of 13 $2,966 .10 . The only issue for decision is whethe r 14 Petitioner is liable for the ten-percent additional tax 15 penalty under I .R .C . section 72 ( t) for a prematur e 16 distribution of his Individual Retirement Account, 17 hereinafter call an IRA . 18 Petitioner is an individual who maintained his 19 legal residence in the Sate of California at the time his 20 petition was filed . Petitioner was born on May 31, 1959 . 21 Petitioner included as gross income a distribution 22 of $29,661 from his IRA on his 2006 Federal individua l 23 income tax return . However, Petitioner did not report o n 24 his return that he was subject to the ten - percent additional 25 tax penalty imposed by Internal . Revenue Code Section 72(t) Heritage Reporting Corporatio n (202) 628-4888 4 1 on early distribution from a qualified retirement plan . 2 On March 3, 2008, Respondent sent Petitioner a 3 notice of deficiency for 2006 . On April 7, 2008, Petitioner 4 filed a timely petition with this Court . In his petition , 5 Petitioner alleges that he is not subject . to the ten-percent 6 additional tax penalty because he withdrew the funds from 7 his IRA due to an emergency stemming from what Petitioner 8 believes to be events leading to the possible imminen t 9 destruction of the world, as more clearly appears from the 10 record . 11 Under Internal Revenue Code Section 72(t), a ten- 12 percent additional tax is imposed on early distribution s 13 from a qualified retirement plan unless the distributions 14 come within one of the several statutory exceptions . 15 Internal Revenue Code Section 4974 (c) defines 16 qualified retirement plans to include IRAs . An earl y 17 distribution from an IRA occurs when a taxpayer takes money 18 out of the IRA before reaching age 59 1/2 . As Petitioner 19 was not yet 59 1/2 at the time he withdrew the funds from 20 his IRA, he is liable for the Internal Revenue Code Section 21 72(t) penalty unless the distribution falls within another 22 exception . 23 With respect to section 72(t), this Court has 24 repeatedly held that it is bound by the list of statutor y 25 exceptions enumerated in section 72(t)(2 ) . For example, see Heritage Reporting Corporatio n (202) 628-4888 5 Arnold v . Commissioner , 111 T .C . 250, 255-256 ( 1998), and Roundy v . Commissioner , T .C . Memo 1995-298, affd . 122 F .3d 835 (9th Cir . 1997) . The record in this case does not sho w that any of the exceptions enumerated in section 72(t ) apply, and , therefore , we hold that Petitioner is liable fo r the ten-percent additional tax . In reaching our holding , we have considered .al l arguments made, and, to the extent not mentioned, w e conclude that they are moot, irrelevant , or without merit . To reflect the foregoing, Decision will be entere d for Respondent . This concludes the Court's oral findings of fact s and opinion . (Whereupon , at 9 :34 a .m ., the bench opinion in th e above-entitled matter was concluded . ) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 1 6 1 7 1 8 1 9 20 Heritage Reporting Corporation (202) 628-4888