State v. Phillips

CLEMENS, Commissioner.

This case presents the question of criminal liability for giving an insufficient funds check to a payee who knew when accepting the check that it was not good and agreed not to present it for payment until later.

The State charged that the defendant unlawfully, and with intent to defraud, issued a $2,000 check, then knowing he had insufficient funds in the bank for its payment. (Although the offense is now a felony, it was then a misdemeanor; § 561.460, V.A.M.S.) The jury brought in a guilty verdict and assessed a $500 fine. The defendant appeals from the ensuing judgment.