Professor Ventry Comments for Bloomberg BNA on Tax Court Judge's Indictment

Professor Dennis Ventry commented for Bloomberg BNA on the indictment of former U.S. Tax Court Judge Diane L. Kroupa on tax evasion charges. Though some observers have suggested that Kroupa may have been singled out for attention due to her status as a Tax Court judge, Professor Ventry pointed out that the charges are very serious.

"Lying to a federal agent is obstruction" and a felony, said Ventry.

"The obstruction charge may be what put it over the edge. If she said ‘I totally screwed up' and came clean, the government may not have pursued criminal charges," Ventry said.

"Smart people do dumb things all the time," he added, "but this is a head-scratcher. If you're a high-level government employee, you side on saying ‘no' to a deduction; you take the conservative approach."

Professor Ventry is an expert in tax policy and legal ethics. His research interests include tax expenditure analysis, family taxation, professional responsibility and standards of care, tax filing and administration, tax compliance, public finance, and tax and legal history. In addition, he was recently added as a co-author on the casebook, Federal Income Taxation with Paul McDaniel, Martin McMahon, Jr., and Daniel L. Simmons.