Opinion ID: 608149
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Kitchen Table Kickback

Text: 57 The Blohms also attack the Tax Court's fact findings regarding the Kitchen Table kickback as clearly erroneous. They argue that the testimony of Stickelber and Ritchey, upon which the Tax Court relied, is inconsistent, contrary to agreed upon stipulations, and self-contradictory. 58 Their strongest salvos are aimed at Ritchey, who the Blohms claim is a crook and therefore unreliable. The former is clear; the latter is not. The Blohms correctly state that Ritchey gave evidence not presently available to the Grand Jury in exchange for immunity from prosecution. They claim that Ritchey was forced to create false evidence against Blohm to save himself from prosecution. That Ritchey agreed to provide new evidence does not, alone, make him inherently incredible. See, e.g., United States v. Greenwood, 974 F.2d 1449, 1457 (5th Cir.1992). Indeed, while the Tax Court found Ritchey to be unsavory, it nonetheless credited his testimony: 59 We hold no esteem for Ritchey, who appears to be the instigator of this insidious, nefarious, and reprehensible scheme as far as the Marion group was concerned, and we consider it anomalous that Ritchey might bear less a brunt or taint than the others of the consequences of this evil plot. Nevertheless, while we do not find Ritchey to be an ideal witness, we find his testimony plausible in context with the testimony of Stickelber and all the circumstances extant. 60 62 T.C.M. at 1592. Ritchey's character and the extent of his cooperation with the government were well known to the Tax Court; his motives and credibility were for it to consider in its role as fact finder. See Amadeo v. Zant, 486 U.S. 214, 223, 108 S.Ct. 1771, 1777, 100 L.Ed.2d 249 (1988). We find no clear error. 61 The Blohms also challenge the Tax Court's fact findings as to the specific dollar amount of the proceeds of the Kitchen Table kickback. No paperwork documented the transaction. Blohm's memory regarding the Kitchen Table kickback was hazy. He testified that Stickelber and Ritchey came to his home one evening and that he remembered a lot of drinking of alcohol. (R.II-282.) He testified that he had no recollection of what was said that evening beyond Ritchey saying something about a Texas Santa Claus when he was bringing money into the house. Id. Blohm further testified that he found a brown sack the next morning containing a few thousand dollars on a counter, and that he put the money into his car trunk and kept it for at least a week before returning the money to Ritchey. (R.II-284.) 62 The Tax Court discounted Blohm's testimony, relying in large part upon the testimony of Stickelber. As noted by the Tax Court: 63 [Blohm] testified that there were a few thousand dollars in the sack [left on the counter after the kickback money was divided]. However, we find his version of this to be incredible, including the aspect where he supposedly put the few thousand dollars in his car truck for several days to a week. [Blohm] did not introduce any other evidence regarding the amount of the Kitchen Table Kickback. Stickelber testified that it was $300,000 plus in total, and Ritchey testified that it was $377,000. They both testified that the cash was in denominations ranging from $20 bills to $100, and that the total was divided equally among the three. On cross-examination, Stickelber acknowledged that in his letter to the Internal Revenue Service he indicated that the amount of his share of the Kitchen Table Kickback was at least $75,000, and that in a deposition taken in a civil lawsuit by Marion against the Texas Group, Stickelber, Ritchey and [Blohm], he testified that the total was $210,000 and his share was $70,000. 64 62 T.C.M. at 1594. The Tax Court found Blohm's version of the Kitchen Table kickback to be evasive, implausible, and incredible. Id. It concluded that since Blohm failed to present credible evidence regarding the amount of the Kitchen Table kickback, he failed to show that the determination in the notice of deficiency of his share of the Kitchen Table kickback of $125,767 was incorrect. Id. at 1595. The Tax Court's fact findings were not clearly erroneous. Accordingly, we agree with its conclusion that the proceeds derived by Blohm from the Kitchen Table kickback scheme were income taxable to him.