Jeter's Good Samaritan to be Taxed for Generous Deed?
The good Samaritan that caught and returned the baseball that marked Derek Jeter’s 3000th hit might have to pay the IRS over $14,000 in taxes according to New York Daily News.
The 23-year-old graciously returned Jeter’s precious memento Saturday at a New York Yankee’s game. His generosity towards Lopez was rewarded with suite tickets for the team’s 32 remaining home games and memorabilia that totals over $120,000.
According to the New York Times, the high value of Lopez’s reward could be considered taxable by the IRS.
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The question of whether or not Lopez will have to shell out cash for his good deed, depends on how the items are viewed: “The legal question of whether it is a gift or prize is whether the transferor is giving the property out of detached and disinterested generosity,” said Columbia University law professor, Michael J. Graetz to the New York Times.
“It is hard for me, not being a Yankee fan, to think of the Yankees as being in the business of exercising generosity to others, but there’s a reasonable case to be made that these were given out of generosity,”.
When Lopez was asked by the New York Daily News to share his thoughts about being forced to pay for the items he received from the New York Yankees , Lopez told reporters, “Worse comes to worse, I’ll have to pay the taxes. The IRS has a job to do, so I’m not going to hold it against them, but it would be cool if they helped me out a little on this.”
