Question

Jane and Jim Jones house was robbed and several uninsured family heirlooms were stolen. Jane and Jim offered a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the burglar and the return of their heirlooms. As a result of the reward, someone who overheard the burglar bragging about the robbery contacted the police. The police arrested the burglar and recovered most of the Jones property. The Jones contributed $10,000 to the police department to cover the reward. The Jones would like to know if they can treat the payment to the police as a charitable contribution.

State a conclusion and list primary authorities

Answer 1

Any reward paid cannot be treated as a charitable contribution unless it is done for charitable purpose as mentioned in laws. Here police is awarded with $10000 for arresting the burglar. Police has done their job and it cannot be considered as a charitable purpose or donation. They cannot claim tax exemption for the same amount.

Primary authority is the law, which includes constitutions, statutes and ordinances, rules and regulations, and case law. These authorities form the rules that courts follow.