A federal jury acquitted a Salt Lake man of three counts of tax fraud Friday afternoon after a one-week trial before U.S. District Judge J. Thomas Greene.
The jury found Brooks K. Hanson, 52, not guilty of filing false tax returns for 1985, 1986 and 1987."He's elated," said Mark C. McLauchan, attorney for Hanson. "This has hung over his head for five years." The IRS asked a federal grand jury to indict Hanson last spring after negotiations over a proposed settlement broke down.
The grand jury returned the indictment on April 15. Hanson was charged with under-reporting $802,000 over the three year period. Hanson runs a mail-order business in Holladay and trades in silver coins. The IRS argued that Hanson could not legally deduct losses in both business from his income.
But the 12-member jury disagreed. After deliberating four hours Friday afternoon, the jury concluded that Hanson had properly reported his income for the three years in question.
Michael Minns also represented Hanson in the matter.