Conference 7.286::dcu

    I remember seeing a $20 come through once that had $20 corners and
    George Washington's picture on it.  (I was a restaurant cashier at the
    time).
    
    The patrons were stopped in the parking lot.  The woman passing it had
    received it at a Gas Company Credit Union Branch (she claimed).
    

    
    RE: .0
    
    Could you please tell us what to look for?  Don't think I've ever seen
    a counterfeit bill.
    
    RE: .1
    
    This one has been occurring in the Worcester, MA area recently.   Know
    your presidents! :-)
    

    re .0:
    You don't need to stop with the branch manager.  (Phil, who was the
    DCU operations manager?)
    
    I find it completely unreasonable for a branch manager to insinuate
    that a member is lying.

    
    RE: .3
    
    I don't think you'd want the operations manager for this one.  The
    Director of Branch Administration is Anne Connell.  

    	As I said in the Colorado notesfile where you mentioned this, 
    	why not re-deposit the funny money with the teller when she
    	is also on the phone and not paying attention!
    
    	Joe Oppelt

    As far as I know, the basic rule about counterfeit money is, if
    you get it you're stuck with it.  Period.  End of discussion.
    Which is not particularly fair, but that's the way it is.

    Of course, if one accepts the statement that "the teller COULDN'T
    have made a mistake," and you KNOW you got the 20 from the credit
    union, then one could call the secret service and complain that
    the credit union deliberately passed you counterfeit money...I
    doubt that you'd get too far, but that argument might make somebody
    at the credit union treat you a little more nicely.

    
    Personnally, If the credit union gave me a counterfeit 20, I would
    aks for a real 20, and If I didn't get it, well...
    
    Go to the police.  Tell them that the DCU is distributing counterfeit
    money!  If they won't give you your $20 in real money, you can at
    least make it a hassle for them...
    
    
    					sms
    

    If this isn't pointed out to the teller during the transaction, how can
    he/she possibly be expected to hand over another $20?

    re: .9
    Yes, my reply in .6 applies (you got it, you're stuck with it).
    IF it had been noted at the time of the transaction, of course
    (one hopes!) one would have gotten a good 20.  But after one
    walks away from the window...forget it.

re: .7, Steve

I like the way your mind works.  :^)

-Jack

    
    I personally believe, that, no matter what the situation, good or bad,
    try and make it fun... 8^)
    
    I mean, let's think about it...  If I went to the ATM machine and got
    a counterfeit $20, then hey, I lost $20!  I don't know about the rest 
    of you, but I like money!  I work pretty hard for my money!  Ok, well,
    I work for it...
    
    Anyways, I would definately go to the police if DCU decided that it is
    in their best interest to not reimburse your 20, and find out how they
    got it.  Let them deal with the police.  I believe that it is a very
    big fine to distribute conterfeit money isn't it??
    
    
    				sms
    

    The whole point is you have to prove that DCU gave you the $20.  You
    can't.
    
    There was a story in the newspaper sometime in the past year or so
    about a man who walked into his bank, made a withdrawal, and as the
    teller was counting the money to him, asked for a money order.  The
    teller told him he had to take his money to the next window to get a
    money order.  He did and as the teller was counting the cash for the
    money order, spotted a fake $100 bill.  She asked the man where he got
    it and he told the teller he got it from the other teller.  Well, in
    the end, the fake $100 was confiscated and the man was out $100.  Why? 
    He couldn't prove he got the fake $100 from the other teller.
    
    Bob

    
    Re: .13
    
    Interesting story.  Wonder how it might have turned out if he
    consulted a lawyer and they pursued the idea that the first teller
    noted the counterfeit $100 bill and made him go to the other window
    specifically so they could stick him with it.  I'll bet just the
    threat of it would have gotten him the $100 back.
    
    Steve
    

    The same is true to be charged with passing phony bills. They have to
    prove that you *knowingly* passed a bad bill. Getting cash from an ATM
    or teller and depositing some or all of it back a few minutes after
    might allow such a case to be built against you.
    
    It is usually the pattern of having several complaints against one
    source that gets the SS interested. Hmmm, kinda like DCU at CXO...
    

    Re .0
    
    What's the big deal. You should have just gone and spent it somewhere.
    You've got no proof that DCU gave it to you so I'm not surprised the
    DCU won't give you another bill.
    
    You didn't make the bill so spend it and let someone else worry about
    it. Well at least that is what I would have done. In yourcase now I'd
    just frame it because you have admitted to several people (plus all the
    readers here) that you now know it is counterfeit. And I presume
    passing a bill that you know is counterfeit is probably illegal.
    
    Dave

<<< Note 283.16 by SMAUG::GARROD "An Englishman's mind works best when it is almost too late" >>>

>    You didn't make the bill so spend it and let someone else worry about
>    it. Well at least that is what I would have done. 

	Advice like this will, at a minimum, get you an invitation from
	the local Secret Service for a "chat". Worst case would be a
	extended vacation in a small town in Kansas.

>And I presume
>    passing a bill that you know is counterfeit is probably illegal.
 
	No "probably" about it. 

Jim

    When I worked in retail, I received a few counterfit bills.  Both $5.00
    and $20.00's.   When I noticed it, I informed the customer, and
    confiscated the bill.  The customer did not receive a new bill from me.
    
    It was the way we were trained.
    
    My mother is a bank manager.  Counterfit bills are confiscated without
    compensation.  I don't know if it is the law, but it may be.
    
    JD

    RE: .18 "Counterfit bills are confiscated without compensation."
    
    Say, now, *there's* a policy that encourages people to come clean! %-(

    
    did somebody think counterfeiting was a VICTIMLESS crime?
    \Gary, 
    former USN Disbursing Officer,
    Disbursing Station Symbol Number X7490

     <<< Note 283.19 by ODIXIE::GEORGE "Do as I say do, not as I do do." >>>

>>    RE: .18 "Counterfit bills are confiscated without compensation."
    
>    Say, now, *there's* a policy that encourages people to come clean! %-(


	Who did you think supplied the compensation? 

	I've only run into this once. While working in an electronics store 
	we had a guy try to pass a bad 20 (it was REAL bad). From his actions 
	we determined this guy had chosen this particular activity as his 
	career. The local police would NOT respond because they claimed that 
	they had no experts that could make a legal determination of the bill's
 	authenticity. The nearest Secret Service office told us to give the 
	guy a receipt, get his name and address and they would come and pick 
	up the bill in the morning (this all happened at 9:00 at night).

	They came down, gave US a receipt and went on their merry way. Never
	did find out if they caught the guy (even though one of the salesman
	got the guys license number).

Jim

    RE: .20 "did somebody think counterfeiting was a VICTIMLESS crime?"
    
    Of course not.  If you are robbed, you report it to police and you are
    the victim.  Counterfeiting adds a twist, it seems to me: if you
    get passed a bad bill, you're "encouraged" to pass it again so that
    someone else is the victim.  If you get caught, you plead ignorance
    ("It never occurred to me that it was bad, officer") and you're no
    worse off than if you had voluntarily turned it in.
    
    The regulations should encourage people to *stop* passing phoney bills,
    he said wistfully.  :}
    
    Steve

        You might check and see if your homeowners or renters policy
        covers thuis type of loss. Given that it is only $20, it might be
        under the deductable, but check and see.

    re: .22
    
>    The regulations should encourage people to *stop* passing phoney bills,
>    he said wistfully.  :}
    
    Unfortunately, if you compensate someone for turning in a bad bill,
    this could be construed as incentive for people to create their OWN bad
    bills -- without any intention of trying to pass it.  They could simply
    turn it in for face value and get some tax-free profits without having
    to worry about being "caught" (you're turning it in, after all).  
    
    So, I think you're stuck with a "you-got-it-you-lose" system.
    
    -- Russ

    re :.-1
    
    I owuld hope that they would track the folks turning them in under
    suich a system so that if folks turn in a lot they would of course be
    suspect. It probably isn't worth it to make phony money to turn in in
    such a program when it isn't safe to turn in more than one or two
    bills.
    
    Chad