SAO helps collect $200K in bad checks

Is it safe to write a bad check in McHenry County?

If the SAO has collected $200,000 in bad checks in 3 1/2 years, what was the cost to the taxpayers to do so? The following press release does not include the expenses of the program.


PRESS RELEASE

STATE’S ATTORNEY’S OFFICE REACHES NEW MILESTONE WITH CHECK ENFORCEMENT PROGRAM

"Louis A. Bianchi, McHenry County State’s Attorney is very pleased to announce that the McHenry County State’s Attorney’s Check Enforcement Program has achieved a new milestone having collected over $200,000.00 for business owners in McHenry County.

"State’s Attorney Bianchi created the in-house Check Enforcement Program on
February 19, 2007 for two primary purposes. First, the program was designed to assist business owners in the collection of outstanding debt due to bad checks. In the past, these bad checks were especially damaging to small business owners who depended upon a steady stream of income to balance their books. Second, this program was designed to assist law enforcement in the detection and effective prosecution of this criminal activity.

"The Check Enforcement Program provides offenders with a one-time chance to make good on bad checks they have passed to merchants and requires that they complete a home course designed to both teach better fiscal responsibility and discourage further criminal violations. In the event restitution and compliance is not promptly received, the matter is turned over to the police for criminal investigation. As a result, the Check Enforcement Program serves as a deterrent to those who contemplate passing a bad check while helping businesses remain viable.

"The writing of bad checks is a significant problem for McHenry County merchants, as is evident by the fact that the McHenry County State’s Attorney’s Office has successfully collected over $200,000.00 for over 160 local businesses."