One June morning in 2009 when high school teacher Latoya Edwards was home with her family, Fort Lauderdale police detective William Harder busted her in a counterfeit check ring roundup.

Harder had taken months to get to that moment, even having a confidential informant wear a wire to make covert recordings. Armed with an arrest warrant, Harder charged Edwards with passing a fraudulent check for $281 at T.J. Maxx, the discount retailer.