Something needs to be done to tighten up what appears to be a far-too-lenient system for enforcing and collecting court-ordered restitution payments. According to a recent report in the Journal-World, only 28 percent of the court-ordered payments have been made since 1998.

In that time, Douglas County judges have ordered the payment of $1.26 million in restitution. Of that total, $352,857 has actually been paid. Who knows what the total might be if figures were available for years prior to 1998?

The way the system is working is a joke. If a lawyer can get a judge to order a client to pay some kind of restitution instead of sending the defendant to jail, the wrong-doer is just about home free.

Among those recently ordered to pay restitution after being convicted of a crime was Wayne Kruse, who pleaded guilty to one count of felony theft and one count of forgery for embezzling almost $100,000 from the Lawrence Education Assn. while he was president of that group. The county’s prosecutor argued that Kruse should serve at least some time in jail, and many local residents probably agree that two years of probation is a lenient sentence for abusing the money and trust of local educators.

Kruse also was ordered to pay $95,384 in restitution in the case. He reportedly has moved to Marysville and is working two jobs, but will the sizable sum ever be repaid? Kruse might be able to restore some of his local reputation by complying with the restitution order, but it seems that if he does, he will be in the minority.

There apparently aren’t any severe consequences for those who decide to ignore restitution orders. A judge can revoke the probation of those who fail to keep up with restitution payments, but how many have been put in jail for failure to pay the money ordered by the court? Not many. It is reported that a 33.3 percent collection fee is added to restitution payments that aren’t made on time, but what difference does that make to someone who isn’t going to pay the restitution anyway? Defendants’ wages can be garnisheed to collect the debt, but how many times does that happen? Probably not often.

The entire system needs to be reviewed. If a judge decides a person found guilty of a crime can avoid jail in part by agreeing to a restitution plan, then this arrangement should be enforced far more stringently than currently is the case in Douglas County.

Breaking the law is serious business, and carrying out the sentence of a court should be equally serious. Currently, that’s not the case in Douglas County.