For the most part, when monies are due you, the onus is on you to collect them. People don’t usually seek you out so that they can give you money, but Cobb County Superior Court is a notable exception. Over 4,000 crime victims who were owed restitution funds have been contacted by the court over the past year and informed of the fact they had some money waiting for them.

The individual who has been charged with the pleasant task of notifying these folks and letting them know that funds were waiting for them is Cobb County Superior Court chief deputy clerk Elva Dombusch. Some of the restitution funds stem from crimes going all the way back the 1980s, and it was no small task to do the research necessary to find so many of these victims. So far, Dombusch has been able to contact about 80% of the individuals and businesses that are entitled to restitution; some 800 or so have yet to be found. So if you were the victim of a crime that was disposed of by the Cobb County Superior Court, you may want to contact them, or have a legal professional do so in your behalf.

Elva Dombush and the Cobb County Superior Court have gone the extra mile to do all that is within their power to help these victims and deliver their due to them, and this commendable effort has not gone without its rewards. Dombusch told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution about a couple of the people that she spoke with that stood out in her mind.

There was a trucker who had been the victim of a burglary some years ago. The economy was impacting him heavily, and Dombush says that he wept when he heard the news that he had $3,200 coming to him as restitution. He had been unable to take his young daughter to Disney World during her summer vacation, and the unexpected windfall would be making that dream a reality. Dombusch says that the man’s emotional reaction drove her to tears as well.

Another case involved a pastor whose van needed $700 in repairs. He did what pastors do: he prayed. Dombusch called. He had restitution money coming. How much? You guessed it, $700.

Says Dombusch: “I felt like Santa Claus. I felt like this is what I’m here for. They were victims the first time. I don’t want them to be victims again because we couldn’t find them.”

This is an uplifting story about people helping people, and it is a reminder to all of us that the system is there to protect us and look after our interests when we are the victims.

If you think that you may have some unclaimed money in Georgia, or if you have been victimized by an act of negligence, contact the People’s Lawyer, Bruce Hagen, at (404) 522-7553, or contact him through his Atlanta Personal Injury website, to discuss the matter and decide how to proceed. Nobody wants to be a victim, but if monies are due you, the People’s Lawyer will work hard to make sure that the system works for you.

Source: Atlanta Journal Constitution