Indiana County District Attorney

What is a Bad Check?

Pennsylvania Consolidated Statute § 4105 sets forth that a person commits an offense if he issues or passes a check knowing that it will not be honored by the drawee. If a person is convicted of knowingly issuing a bad check, he may be ordered, in addition to any criminal penalties, to reimburse the payee the amount of the check, interest thereon at legal rate, and a service charge.

When a person receives a bad check, they are required by Pennsylvania Statutes to notify the check writer. If the check writer resolves the check at this point, it is no longer an issue.

How does the Program Work?

If the check writer refuses to make restitution after your attempt, the check can be turned over to the Indiana County District Attorney's Bad Check Restitution Program.

To submit a check to our program you can:

• Mail the check image and the bad check crime report to our office
• Fax the check and the bad check crime report to: 724-465-3842
• Bring the check to our office

As a condition of this program, once the check is submitted you may not collect funds at your store. Because this is a diversion opportunity, there is a strong incentive for check writers to comply. The check writer has two choices: comply with the requirements or face possible prosecution.

Once the check writer makes the payment, our office will disburse funds on a weekly basis. Merchants will collect the full face amount of the check, and an additional service fee.

If the check writer does not comply with the requirements of the Program, prosecution proceedings can begin.