Issuing a Bad Check Charges in Salt Lake County
Utah Code § 76-6-505 established that a person is guilty of issuing a bad check or draft if he or she issues or passes a check or draft for the payment of money, for the purpose of obtaining from any person, firm, partnership, or corporation, any money, property, or other thing of value or paying for any services, wages, salary, labor, or rent, knowing it will not be paid by the drawee and payment is refused by the drawee. The statute further states that a person who issues a check or draft for which payment is refused by the drawee is presumed to know the check or draft would not be paid if he had no account with the drawee at the time of issue.
The knowledge that a check or draft would be refused can be a very difficult for a prosecutor to prove. In many cases, alleged offenders use their lack of knowledge as a defense to have the criminal charges dismissed.
The statute also states that an individual is guilty of issuing a bad check or draft if he or she fails to make good and actual payment to the payee in the amount of the refused check or draft within 14 days of his or her receiving actual notice of the check or draft’s nonpayment. In other words, alleged offenders are not automatically charged with issuing a bad check upon the initial return of payment and such people have fortnight to rectify the situation before such charges are filed.