MC Hammer Stuck With $800K Tax Debt
An appeals court has shut down MC Hammer’s attempt to reverse a decision ordering him to cough up nearly $800,000 to the IRS over unpaid taxes, leaving the rapper on the hook for the massive debt.
The feds sued Hammer, aka Stanley Burrell in 2012, claiming the “You Can’t Touch This” rapper never paid them back taxes for the years 1996 and 1997. The court sided with the feds and awarded them a judgment against Hammer in the amount of $798,033.48.
Hammer then appealed of the judgment, claiming it was unfair he had to pay the amount plus penalties when he ALREADY paid it as part of his bankruptcy.
Then the feds fired back, claiming Hammer doesn’t seem to understand his tax debt situation. The IRS explained that they filed a claim in his bankruptcy for unpaid taxes for the years 1993, 1994 and 1995 totaling $1,517,450.92. They said Hammer’s tax debt for 1996 and 1997 totaling $800,000 was NOT wiped clean and he still owed them. They wanted the appeals court to confirm the lower courts judgment of $798,033.48 against him.
Hammer responded claiming in his infamous bankruptcy case, there was more than a million dollars to be paid to creditors. The IRS didn’t get a cut of that money because it claimed now to be owed anything, and that money went to other creditors.
The rapper explained that if they had said something about the money owed, it would have gone to them before anyone else because Uncle Sam is a priority creditor in bankruptcy cases.
Hammer said that, “To come back after the fact and assert claims after millions of dollars have been paid out by creditors from which these claims have been paid in full, is the misconduct the USA committed.”
He pleaded with the appeals court to overturn the order making him pay $800,000 to the IRS over decades old tax debt.
Then on December 17th, the appeals court came back with their decision in the years long battle between Hammer and Uncle Sam. The decision sided with the government and affirmed the previous court’s decision.
The order states that the IRS did not commit misconduct in their actions. Further, it says that the rapper failed to provide any evidence that Uncle Sam did anything wrong in his bankruptcy. Also, they add that having Hammer pay the $800k+ in tax debt will not be a serious injustice to him.
They agreed with the original decision in the case and ordered that MC Hammer is on the hook for the $800,000 in back taxes to the IRS.
To learn more, check out this XXL story.
