Tax evasion is a serious criminal offense that can carry significant penalties if one is convicted. Colorado residents who have found themselves facing such charges can likely help their situations by retaining legal counsel who has experience litigating white collar criminal defense cases. In short, when facing such charges, who is at one’s side matters.
Tax evasion is defined as the deliberate failure to pay or underpay one’s tax liability. Now, mistakes do happen; the tax laws are not easy to understand, but when tax evasion charges are filed, it is because the Internal Revenue Services believes that more than a mistake was made. A few examples of tax evasions include:
- Concealing income
- Filing returns with false information
- Overstating deductions
- Destroying records
- Falsifying records
The burden of proof lies with the prosecuting attorney in any criminal case. In order for a prosecutor to achieve a conviction, he or she must show that some basic elements exist in any given case. When it comes to tax evasion, those elements are
- Proof of intentionally avoiding one’s tax liability
- Proof that tax is owed
- Proof that one willingly violated the law
Colorado residents who are convicted on tax evasion charges may spend up to five years behind bars and have to pay fines of up to $250,000 on top of having to pay their taxes and any interest and penalties that have accrued. Such penalties can have long-lasting consequences for oneself and one’s family. A white collar criminal defense attorney will have the ability to review the finer details of a client’s case and help that individual come up with a defense strategy that will best suit his or her interests.
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