Legal Question in Criminal Law in Michigan

Several months ago a friend of mine was given, by the office manager of the large medical practice she works in, a total of $25,000 over a period of 4 months. The money was given to her in the form of company checks, made out in her name and signed by a practice doctor (although they may have been forged) and deposited into her bank account. The payments were justified (with the boss' words - not in writing) as payment for over-time work done at home and on the weekends. It turns out, the payment was not authorized and the boss has taken well over $250,000 since then and is still actively stealing money and fraudulently using the practice's credit cards. My question is, what are the laws broken by my friend? Its hard to justify $25,000 just for a few months of over-time work, so she had to know to some degree it was stolen, but she has an absolutely clean record and has never been in trouble for anything before. Once the manager's embezzlement is discovered it is likely he will try to take my friend down with him. What are the legal issues she might face?


Asked on 2/16/11, 5:08 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Neil O'Brien Eaton County Special Assistant Prosecuting Attorney

Criminal "receiving or concealing stolen property" laws require proof that the defendant bought, received, possessed, concealed, or aided in the concealment of stolen, embezzled, or converted property, knowing or having reason to know or reason to believe that the property was stolen, embezzled, or converted. R&C $20,000 or more is a felony carrying up to 10 yrs prison and/or $15,000 fine (or 3 times the value of the property whichever is more). So, if the circumstances convinced a jury that your friend "knew or had reason to know" that the money was not legitimate, your friend could be guilty of a serious crime. There are less serious felony and misdemeanor R&C charges, depending on the value involved. Maybe there's a reasonable doubt about SOME of the value -- for instance, if the friend was working overtime then some of the $25,000 was 'legit', but was the remaining non-legitimate money $20k or more, $1,000-$19,999, $200-$999, or under $200? Does he/she still have the money? His/Her cooperation with the authorities (including returning the money) may go a long way in authorities deciding to prosecute or how the case is resolved ... as well as what the judge decides to do.

Read more
Answered on 2/23/11, 1:51 pm


Related Questions & Answers

More Criminal Law questions and answers in Michigan