Public demands action on crime

An embezzlement case involving $17,500 allegedly stolen by a high school activities bookkeeper hit a nerve with the public when the school board and Superintendent Darlene Schottle at first decided not to pursue criminal charges.

The initial agreement was to handle the situation internally and have bookkeeper Cindy Upwall, who resigned after being confronted, simply pay back the money. Many were outraged when it appeared no charges would be filed for stealing money from student activity funds.

It certainly sent the wrong message not only to our children but also to the community that a white-collar crime like embezzling is somehow not as bad as robbing a bank or holding up a convenience store. But in some ways, it's worse. The school district and students put their trust in Upwall for years, and that trust was betrayed.

Now that a criminal investigation is under way, there's some measure of satisfaction that law-enforcement officials will decide how or if Upwall should be held accountable. Even though there's no guarantee the confessed embezzler will serve time in jail or even be charged with a crime, it's important to fully examine the case.

To that end, it's a wise decision for Kalispell Public Schools to re-evaluate money-handling procedures. Most of the stolen money came from cash funds, including gate receipts from sporting events. A check-and-balance system is in order, and may be as simple as having more than one person involved in the accounting of cash receipts.

It's human nature to be tempted when the handling of cash is involved. That's all the more reason to put in place a monitoring system that will assure every last dollar goes where it's supposed to.

Embezzlement is a crime, whether it's one dollar or thousands of dollars. Other school districts, nonprofit organizations and business enterprises can learn a lesson here. If they haven't yet put systems in place to monitor cash transactions, they should do so.

Honesty certainly is still the best policy, but realistically it's good to have a backup plan.