Civil vs. Criminal Charges??

[IMadeAMistake]

What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state? California

The situation is that at my job, I have many responsibilities including signing checks and purchaseing. Anyway, I had several company cards with my name on them and over 2 year, racked up about $10k in debt without my employers knowing. I was paying the minimum for each of the two cards. In Oct of '04 I came clean and told them what I had done. I have been at this job for almost 5 years so it's like family. Anyway, they decided to keep me at my job, and wrote up an agreement that I would pay a certain amount each pay period and if I defaulted on any payment, the would have the right to press charges. So, this past month they decided that the needed to hire someone full-time (I'm part-time). I have another part-time job so it was impossible for me to wrk full-time for them and they know this. The agreement was based on my employment. now, they are looking for someone full-time and just recently said that they aren't comfortable with me leaving the company owing them $7k still and wanted me to find a way to pay them back before I left. Well, I don't have the resources to do so but ill continue to pay them something, maybe not quite the amount I was paying before because with just one job, I don't have the income that I had before. Soo...my question is, do they still have the right to file criminal charges against me? A lawyer friend in another state said that once they made that payment agreement, it became a civil matter. I need to know if they can really file criminal charges still because they think that if they had told me that they were going to file charges unless I paid them back before I left the company (was replaces I should say) I would have found a way to get the money...which isn't the case. What are my rights? I feel like they are trying to badger me.
Please...I need to know what the law says about this.

Thank you!!!!

 

[seniorjudge]

What is the name of your state?What is the name of your state? California

The situation is that at my job, I have many responsibilities including signing checks and purchaseing. Anyway, I had several company cards with my name on them and over 2 year, racked up about $10k in debt without my employers knowing. I was paying the minimum for each of the two cards. In Oct of '04 I came clean and told them what I had done. I have been at this job for almost 5 years so it's like family. Anyway, they decided to keep me at my job, and wrote up an agreement that I would pay a certain amount each pay period and if I defaulted on any payment, the would have the right to press charges. So, this past month they decided that the needed to hire someone full-time (I'm part-time). I have another part-time job so it was impossible for me to wrk full-time for them and they know this. The agreement was based on my employment. now, they are looking for someone full-time and just recently said that they aren't comfortable with me leaving the company owing them $7k still and wanted me to find a way to pay them back before I left. Well, I don't have the resources to do so but ill continue to pay them something, maybe not quite the amount I was paying before because with just one job, I don't have the income that I had before. Soo...my question is, do they still have the right to file criminal charges against me? A lawyer friend in another state said that once they made that payment agreement, it became a civil matter. I need to know if they can really file criminal charges still because they think that if they had told me that they were going to file charges unless I paid them back before I left the company (was replaces I should say) I would have found a way to get the money...which isn't the case. What are my rights? I feel like they are trying to badger me.
Please...I need to know what the law says about this.

Thank you!!!!

Q: Soo...my question is, do they still have the right to file criminal charges against me? A lawyer friend in another state said that once they made that payment agreement, it became a civil matter.

A: Your lawyer friend is wrong and criminal charges can still be filed against you if the statute of limitations have not run on the theft.

BUT the good news is that any prosecutor with half a mind would never file such a CS charge.

Can you imagine what this would look like before a jury?



Matthew 5:25: Agree with thine adversary quickly while thou art on the way with him, lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison.

 

[IMadeAMistake]

Civil vs. Criminal??

If financial fraud is discovered, “One of the worst things a business owner can do is fail to prosecute,” says Turner. In more than 70 percent of cases prosecuted, the perpetrator pled guilty/no contest, according to the ACFE 2004 Report to the Nation. But a vast majority of business owners do not prosecute, preferring instead to settle privately (26.6 percent). Some take no action at all for fear of bad publicity (26.1 percent). Turner calls both a mistake. “If you accept as little as $100 from an embezzler in his or her supposed efforts at making good, your criminal case immediately becomes a civil case because you’ve accepted those funds[/B]. Don’t do it. Prosecute civilly and criminally at the same time.”

I read this on a website for some CPA society of Illinois.....should I assume CA law is different? I've already paid them $3000 and intend to pay them until it is paid off, I haven't defaulted on any payments.
I agree, any prosecutor in his/her right mind would bring about criminal charges based on the situation but I was hoping that since we made up this agreement and I've been abiding by it, they lose the right to prosecute....

 

[Katy W.]

What are my rights?

You have the right to remain silent...