Michigan Attorney Indicted on Tax Charges

A federal grand jury in Detroit charged a Michigan attorney yesterday with filing false tax returns and willfully failing to file tax returns.

According to the indictment, Shawn Smith, who calls himself “Shawn the Law,” is a lawyer residing in Birmingham. For 2017 through 2020, Smith allegedly filed false individual income tax returns that did not report hundreds of thousands of dollars of gross receipts that he earned from his law business. In addition, Smith allegedly did not file an individual income tax return for 2021 and 2022.

If convicted, Smith faces a maximum penalty of three years in prison for each false return count and a maximum penalty of one year in prison for each count of failing to file a tax return. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Stuart M. Goldberg of the Justice Department’s Tax Division, U.S. Attorney Dawn N. Ison for the Eastern District of Michigan and IRS Special Agent in Charge Charles Miller made the announcement.

IRS Criminal Investigation is investigating the case.

Trial Attorneys Jeffrey A. McLellan and Kenneth C. Vert of the Tax Division are prosecuting the case.

An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.