New Property Crimes Compensation Board Up and Running in the District Attorney's Office
06/23/2010
CONTACT INFO: Charles Branson Douglas County District Attorney 785-841-0211 cbranson@douglas-county.com Douglas County District Attorney Charles Branson announced today the Douglas County Property Crimes Compensation Fund (PCCF) is open and ready for business. The newly created PCCF will review applications for assistance in financial reimbursement for losses Douglas County private citizens incurred when their personal property was damaged due to a criminal act. The damage must have occurred on or after April 1, 2010. At the June 18 PCCF monthly meeting, the Board approved its first application. The citizen was a victim of a criminal damage to property case where the defendant ruined a piece of his living room furniture. The next monthly meeting will be held on July 16 at 3:00 p.m. in the DA Conference Room. The Board will review and determine reimbursement approvals and award amounts for any applications received over the past month. Applications may be picked up in person, mailed by request or they can be found on-line at: http://www.douglas-county.com/depts/da/docs/pdf/da_apppropcrimescom.pdf. Restitution is statutorily capped at $250 for misdemeanor cases and $500 for felony cases. As funds are limited, the Board will look for demonstrated need when prioritizing applications. It should also be noted the creation of the PCCF will not change or lower the amount of restitution the State will ask the Court to order a defendant to pay; instead the Board will in effect advance a portion of the restitution to the victim. The Board will then make every attempt to collect that amount from the defendant through a restitution order. If you have any questions about this program, please contact the District Attorney's office at 785-841-0211 or districtattorney@douglas-county.com. Office updates may also be found on Facebook and Twitter. -30-
Media Contact:
Cheryl L. Wright - Assistant to the District Attorney
District Attorney's Office
785-841-0211
cwright@douglas-county.com