Tax Evasion

This week I will be exploring the white collar crime we know as tax evasion. Tax evasion is the illegal evasion of taxes by individuals, corporations, and trusts. These actions normally take place when taxpayers purposely lie about their information to tax authorities to reduce their tax liabilities. These activities include actions “such as declaring less income, profits or gains than the amounts actually earned, or overstating deductions.”(Wiki) When it comes to tax evasion a common act is the informal economy association. One stem of the problem would be the amount of unreported income, this is the difference between the amount of income that people are supposed to report to the tax authorities and the actual amount that people report. This is a very complex crimes of in my terms is like a person attempting to outsmart the system and run away with the dirty money they cheated to get. I will explain each aspect of this crime and show the effects it has on the system along with the economy.

With there being many different avenues or levels in a sense with this crime the penalties for such a crime also range like the different levels of the crime. In the seven titles of penalties for the crime the general punishment looks to be any fine ranging from $100,000 to $500,000(usually for corporations) and or a prison sentence ranging from 1 to 5 years. Aside from the prison time a person may have to endure following up after the crime, the amount of money a suspect is fined is to act as the aggressor of the penalty. Taking money out of the pockets of the government is something that won’t stay under their eye of detection for too long without being interfered. But some would argue someone needs to police the government because what they take away from people but to think from the perception of a person on the outside looking in it just might seem that we all just have our hands in each other’s pocket waiting for the right time to take while no one will notice.

If people believe that lying on their taxes and fixing their income for economic increase doesn’t affect our economy then they should do their research. “According to "The Guardian" newspaper, the U.S. economy lost an estimated $337 billion in 2014 as a result of illegal tax avoidance, or tax evasion.”(eHow) That is a huge dent on our economy, and just imagine where all of those dollars could have gone. And with this number seeming to appear higher in other studies, it just leaves me in a place of uncertainty on why people commit these crimes. “The taxes commonly evaded include federal and state income taxes and state and regional sales and real estate taxes.”(eHow) These are important factors and important money that is being taken from the government. Tax evasions rob the government of money that is needed to carry out laws and create a better environment for the country. This also reduces how effective our government is and hurts our economic status. “If $450 billion in revenue is lost to the federal government because of income tax evasion, then $450 billion in federal programs cannot be funded or, if funded, will have a negative effective on the national debt, which will grow by the same amount.”(example provided by Patrick Gleeson) I don’t think there is any more of an explanation needed to make the claim that this criminal action has an extreme negative effect on the economy.

Growing older and experiencing different things, I have to admit that I am more aware of the problems we have around us. Studying criminology has gave me an even insight on the crimes seen and unseen around us. All of white collar crime has a negative effect on the economy and each of them have their different levels on which they affect the system. Tax evasion is something I hear about all the time and my parents always stress to me the importance of doing all thing the right way so you won’t have to deal with the problems in the long run.

Work Cited

"Types and Schemesof White Collar Crime." TYPES OF WHITE COLLAR CRIME AND SCHEMES. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Mar. 2016.

Patrick Gleeson, Ph. D., Registered Investment Adv. "How Does Tax Evasion Affect the Economy?" EHow. Demand Media, n.d. Web. 23 Mar. 2016.

Extortion

Under the tree of white collar crime, there is a branch known as extortion. "Extortion is a criminal offense of obtaining money, property or services from a person, entity, individual or institution, through coercion." In other words extortion is when you forcefully (or by threat) get something, in most cases money, extortion is also known as blackmailing, "shakedown", and or exaction. This action is run by various organized crime groups. And the underlying truth that some don't know about the crime is the fact that the obtainment of the money is not the only thing it takes to make the case offensive, threatening someone or any action parallel to violence with the requirement of payment to put an end to or halt the violence threaten towards a person can also be labeled as a form of extortion. Making the demands for payment, creating an uncomfortable setting for an individual until a payment is made, all forms of extortion.

Extortion and robbery are like brother and sister, with on being more complex than aggressive. With robbery ("The taking of money or goods in the possession of another, from his or her person or immediate presence, by force or intimidation."), whether armed or not, the offender uses immediate force and fear tactics to take a victim's property, whereas in extortion the presence of violence hoovers over the victim through the pressures of the offender until the proper payment is reached. Extortion for the most part takes place in high end businesses, on the corporate side of thing. And these organized crime groups' targets are usually smaller businesses, organizations, and or groups of people (even single individuals) that have little or no power to fight against the personal trap placed upon them. Blackmailing is another avenue in the extortion business, this is where the offender threatens to leak out information about a victim. This information is usually very personal to an individual, sometimes incriminating, and even socially damaging. And similar to all extortion the only way to end the threats and violence is the issuing of the required payments.

Some popular extortion cases to the media are one of Michael Jordan and one of Michael Bloomberg. In Jordan's case it was an amount of five million dollars demanded from his ex-wife and she claimed that if he did not pay should reveal the shocking truth about an affair during their relationship. It was reported that Jordan did issue his ex-wife two hundred and fifty thousand dollars during the claims to keep her quite, but that amount was no good whereas she later still threaten Jordan for the remainder of the funds. Now in Bloomberg's case his business was hacked into and the offenders of the crime threatened with two hundred thousand the price. The men were taken care of when attempting to make a pick up for the funds.

All of the crimes under the umbrella of extortion, this includes bribery, blackmail, and ransom are all in most cases considered felony crimes, and felony crimes are met with serious consequences. The punishment for extortion can result in fines or imprisonment, and even sometimes both. "Under federal and state laws, extortion carries up to a 20-year prison sentence. The punishment of extortion depends on whether force was used in extorting money or other property." So the results of heavy fines, prison sentencing, probation and/or parole, and restitution for the victims are all the ending outcome of extortion crimes. The unfortunate truth to this is that like the other white collar crimes committed it just seems to slide under the radar of the public. Leaving many in fear of their life and others with the power to control the peace of other's lives. These white collar crimes go so unnoticed that little impact is done to stop it but when the offenders are caught all charges must apply. There should be no window of opportunity for any criminal rich or poor.

"What Are Some Examples Of Extortion ?" What Are Some Examples Of Extortion. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Feb. 2016.

"Punishments." Extortion Punishments Comments. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Feb. 2016.

Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 29 Feb. 2016.