United States of America v. John K. Thornton

United States Court of Appeals
For the Eighth Circuit
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No. 15-1774
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United States of America
lllllllllllllllllllllPetitioner - Appellee
v.
John K. Thornton
lllllllllllllllllllllRespondent - Appellant
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Appeal from United States District Court
for the District of Minnesota - Minneapolis
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Submitted: October 28, 2015
Filed: November 6, 2015
[Unpublished]
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Before SMITH, COLLOTON, and SHEPHERD, Circuit Judges.
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PER CURIAM.

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John Thornton appeals after the district court found him in constructive civil1
contempt and imposed sanctions for his failure to comply with its order enforcing
Internal Revenue Service summonses served on him. For reversal, Thornton challenges
the court’s subject matter jurisdiction over federal taxation matters, asserts that he is
a citizen of Minnesota and not a citizen of the United States, and questions the
sufficiency of the evidence to support a finding of contempt. Upon careful review of
the record and the parties’ submissions on appeal, we find Thornton’s arguments
unavailing: the court properly exercised subject matter jurisdiction to compel
compliance with the IRS summonses under specific statutory authority, see 26 U.S.C.
§§ 7402(b), 7604; his citizenship argument is frivolous, see United States v. Jagim,
978 F.2d 1032, 1036 (8th Cir. 1992); and a transcript of his interview with IRS
officials shows by clear and convincing evidence that he failed to comply with the
enforcement order by providing non-responsive answers and refusing to produce
relevant financial documents, and nothing in the record suggests he was unable to
comply, see Chicago Truck Drivers v. Bhd. Labor Leasing, 207 F.3d 500, 505 (8th
Cir. 2000). Accordingly, we affirm. See 8th Cir. R. 47B. The pending motion is
denied.
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The Honorable Susan Richardson Nelson, United States District Judge for the1
District of Minnesota, adopting the report and recommendations of the Honorable
Tony N. Leung, United States Magistrate Judge for the District of Minnesota.
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