Opinion ID: 798947
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 8

Heading: 1995 Tax Count

Text: We have previously described as examples of affirmative acts conduct such as making false statements to the IRS for the purpose of evading taxes, United States v. Klausner, 80 F.3d 55, 62 (2d Cir.1996), establishing accounts in the names of other entities to conceal income, Josephberg, 562 F.3d at 491, and `handling of one's affairs to avoid making the records usual in transactions of the kind,' id. (quoting Spies v. United States, 317 U.S. 492, 499, 63 S.Ct. 364, 87 L.Ed. 418 (1943)). More broadly, we have held that [a]n affirmative act includes `any conduct, the likely effect of which would be to mislead or to conceal.' Klausner, 80 F.3d at 62 (quoting Spies, 317 U.S. at 499, 63 S.Ct. 364). With these principles in mind, we review the evidence relating to the tax evasion count for 1995 (Count Two). The most significant testimony relating to that count was that of Peter Testaverde. As set forth above, Testaverde testified that Litwok barred him from verifying the accuracy of the trading account statements that she claimed were inaccurate and thereby prevented him from preparing 1995 K-1 tax forms for Kohn Investment I LP's partnersincluding its general partner, Kohn Investment Management, which Litwok owned. Without K-1 tax forms, the company's partners could not determine their income and file their returns. Based on Testaverde's testimony, a rational juror could find that Litwok actively prevented the filing of her returns that year. On a sufficiency challenge, her conduct constitutes an affirmative act sufficient to sustain her conviction on Count Two.