Former New Jersey beauty queen sentenced in check fraud scheme
A former New Jersey beauty queen was sentenced last week to a year in prison for writing more than $70,000 in bad checks. The defendant is a former winner of Mrs. New Jersey U.S. pageant which she won in 2005. The sentence was imposed after the defendant reached a plea agreement with the Essex County Prosecutor's Office in January. The defendant's attorney argued for probation for the 36 year old mother of two, her sons ages 5 and 7, but Judge Torkwase Sekou felt that a jail sentence was appropriate. The defendant has a pattern of criminal behavior based on eight prior arrests, mostly for theft related offenses, in the last ten (10) years and she previously spent six months in prison in 1999. The defendant was looking at a maximum of ten years in prison had she taken the case to trial. Now, she will probably serve about two months before she is eligible for parole. For additional information, please see, "Judge: Beauty queen a "master of deception".
In New Jersey, criminal charges for check fraud or "writing bad checks" is codified under N.J.S.A. 2C:21-5 which provides:
§ 2C:21-5. Bad checks
A person who issues or passes a check or similar sight order for the payment of money, knowing that it will not be honored by the drawee, commits an offense as provided for in subsection c. of this section. For the purposes of this section as well as in any prosecution for theft committed by means of a bad check, an issuer is presumed to know that the check or money order (other than a post-dated check or order) would not be paid, if:
a. The issuer had no account with the drawee at the time the check or order was issued; or
b. Payment was refused by the drawee for lack of funds, or due to a closed account, after a deposit by the payee into a bank for collection or after presentation to the drawee within 46 days after issue, and the issuer failed to make good within 10 days after receiving notice of that refusal or after notice has been sent to the issuer's last known address. Notice of refusal may be given to the issuer orally or in writing in any reasonable manner by any person.
c. An offense under this section is:
(1) a crime of the second degree if the check or money order is $ 75,000.00 or more;
(2) a crime of the third degree if the check or money order is $ 1,000.00 or more but is less than $ 75,000.00;
(3) a crime of the fourth degree if the check or money order is $ 200.00 or more but is less than $ 1,000.00;
(4) a disorderly persons offense if the check or money order is less than $ 200.00.
