I was in charge of a school account. Checks came in that were written to and were supposed to be deposited into a completely different school entity (a 5013c group). I needed that money for a school expense, and nobody needed that money at that 5013c because they were having issues with not having enough officers to operate. So I deposited those checks into the school account that needed $ and I spent it on school expenses. I didn't ask permission of the 5013c and I had no intention of telling anyone I took their money. I just wanted to do what the school needed. I didn't put any money into my own pocketbook. Then a person who knew about the checks that the 5013c should have gotten but didn't started asking questions like, where's the $? And because I am in a position of authority and well-liked I was able to get them to stop asking by blaming them for being responsible for that money and I got another gentleman to believe that the person looking for the money had in fact long ago forgotten they had changed where the money was supposed to go, redirected the money to the school fund where I spent it. The gentleman I convinced then accused the person of doing that at a public meeting, so I was in the clear. I then openly admitted spending the money I just changed how I got it, pretending the checks had been written to the school and not the 5023c. Well, an audit discovered the problem and I admitted then that I took those checks. Thankfully, the auditor just told me to pay it back. I never did that since they didn't follow up. But the irritating thing is the person was still poking around looking for the money and now the gentleman I got to say they'd changed the checks realized from the audit that the checks hadn't been changed and so now realizes I duped him. He's mad and wants now to press charges against me that I stole the money. That seems over the top to me. I didn't steal anything, I spent it on the kids and the 5013c would have also spent it on the kids in some other way so did I commit any crime or is he bluffing?

Let me see if I understand this - you received checks payable to a not-for-profit (which may or may not have needed the money). You cashed them (because "the school" needed the money) and used them for other than not-for-profit purposes.

That's a violation of IRS rules.

It's also stealing AND misappropriating funds.

How do you figure you didn't steal from the not-for-profit to benefit the for-profit?

This is sort of Robin-Hoodish.

Yes, you are guilty of embezzlement.

Yes you are guilty of actually the crime for every check, if they put the checks together as one crime, and it is a large amount it can even be a felony.

Plus IRS issues on top of that.

You have better go to the school, show them what you did and have the school write a check to the 501 charity for the money, or you had better write that check.

In either case, if it all comes out expect at least to lose your job, and I would say have some criminal charges if the school or the charity either one wants to press charges

Wait a minute... But a public school is a non-profit, isn't it?? The same kids benefitted from the money I spent as would have benefitted from the 3023C, just I bought different things is all...

I should have typed 5013C, fingers got on wrong keys!!

The people who donated gave that donation for a specific cause. You handed the money to another entity.

That's fraud and embezzlement.

If I give to, say, the SPCA and you decide that the City Animal Shelter needs the money more, it's fraud and embezzlement if my donation ends up with the City Animal Shelter.

Arguing with the very people who are trying to help you is not very smart.

If you believe you did nothing wrong, then that will be your defense when you are charged - and you can be charged on every transaction/check, not just as a whole.

It doesn't matter that you didn't use the money for yourself. It doesn't matter that you gave the money to another non profit. What matters is that you were responsible for seeing that the money was allocated to the organization it was meant for. You did not do that, but instead you routed the money somewhere else. That is fraud, embezzlement, misappropriation of funds, etc.

In fact, if we take money in to our Church ( 501C3) and they mark the money for youth group, but I spend it for bibles for the pews I could be in serious trouble and would have broken several laws.

You may have intended well but if you did not have money to buy things, you needed to talk to your boss, the school district for money, not steal money from another group.