Judge Holds Defendant to Answer in Forgery and Counterfeiting Case

by Tiffany Yeh

Floyd Taylor is charged with felony forgery and counterfeiting in the amount of $35,000, a violation of Penal Code section 476a. Judge David Reed held Mr. Taylor to answer.

Floyd Taylor used to own a company called FBT Transport. He was to pay Enterprise Truck Rental $35,000 on or before January 31, 2015. He was in contact with an employee at the West Sacramento Enterprise office.

Deputy Public Defender Dan Hutchinson argued that Mr. Taylor had postdated the check for $35,000. Postdating is when you put down a later date than the date you actually write the check. Mr. Taylor’s check was dated for February 2, 2015.

Mr. Taylor and Enterprise Truck Rental had had a business relationship for several years, since 2012. The amounts Mr. Taylor paid to Enterprise were around $30,000-$40,000 each month since 2012. He did usually pay the amount to Enterprise on the last day of the month, but had always made the payment.

The Enterprise employee remembers there may have been a time when Mr. Taylor’s check bounced, but when Mr. Taylor found out about it, he immediately wrote a cashier’s check for the amount, made out to Enterprise, and that cashier’s check went through.

Mr. Taylor had told the employee that he relies on being paid by the U.S. Post Office for contracts he makes with them. Taylor’s helps the post office deliver mail.

Mr. Taylor receives payments from the post office near the end of the month, which is a big part of why he usually pays Enterprise late in the month.

After the $35,000 check did not go through, the Enterprise employee worked with Mr. Taylor to have Taylor pay $1,500 a week, but Mr. Taylor put that amount on his credit card, which was declined. Enterprise then decided to stop renting to Mr. Taylor’s company and took back their trucks.

Mr. Hutchinson argued that Mr. Taylor has done around $400,000 in business with Enterprise and has paid them at the end of the month (when paid by the post office), every time. He stated that there is no fraudulent intent by Mr. Taylor.

In fact, there were two previous times when Mr. Taylor wrote checks to Enterprise and asked the Enterprise employee to hold off on cashing the individual checks until payments by the post office to Mr. Taylor were processed. During February of 2015, Mr. Taylor had postdated the check. He had not received money from the post office then, and thus was not able to pay Enterprise.

Mr. Hutchinson argued that Mr. Taylor was a bad businessman at the end, but did not have a fraudulent intent. He was trying to make his business work and survive (but Taylor’s business went bankrupt pretty shortly after February of 2015).

Deputy District Attorney Matt De Moura argued that Mr. Taylor only had around $27,000 in his bank account on January 30, 2015, and had around $700 in his account on February 2. He did not have sufficient balance to cover his check, and thus committed fraud. After February, Mr. Taylor did not keep in contact with Enterprise about his situation. He had written a check knowing that he had insufficient funds.

Judge David Reed held the defendant to answer on the charge.

Mr. Hutchinson asked the judge to consider reducing the charge from a felony to a misdemeanor. He said that Taylor was a man trying to keep his business working and Enterprise will receive restitution, regardless of whether Taylor is charged with a felony or a misdemeanor.

Mr. De Moura argued that $35,000 was a “significant financial obligation” for Enterprise to be out that much money, and argued that it should be a felony.

Judge Reed stated that it was indeed a lot of money. If the defense shows that there was evidence that Mr. Taylor expected to be paid by the post office, and discloses that information, including the amount, to the prosecution and court, he would consider the defense’s request. The defendant will be arraigned on June 10, at 9am.

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