Wrigley asks judge to approve settlement with Glasser Images

January 27, 2023

BISMARCK, N.D. (KFGO) – North Dakota Attorney General Drew Wrigley is asking a judge to approve a settlement with the owner and an employee of a photography business that closed suddenly in 2021, leaving customers without services and, in many cases, without pictures or videos.

As part of the agreement, Glasser Images owner Jack Glasser and former employee Jace Schacher are banned from owning or operating a photography business in North Dakota. They are also required to pay over $800,000 in restitution to customers and subcontractors they worked with as well as a $30,000 civil penalty.

Glasser and Schacher each filed bankruptcy last August. The settlement would not allow those penalties to be included in the bankruptcies.

The Consumer Protection Division began investigating Glasser Images in October of 2021. Glasser Images, Glasser, and Schacher were accused of violating North Dakota’s consumer protection laws by taking advance payments for wedding photography or videography, but not providing the services. They also worked with, but did not pay, subcontractors. There were 540 complaints against the company, including some from South Dakota.

The investigation also found that Glasser and Schacher had wrongfully paid for personal expenditures using Glasser Images’ funds, including some advance payments. Glasser had claimed the company’s financial problems were caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, but records show that the problems predated the COVID-19 pandemic.

“These defendants promised important services to wedding couples who paid for photography and video services on one of the most important days of their lives and then failed to do so, causing almost incalculable distress,” Wrigley said.

According to Fargo attorney Tim O’Keeffe, Glasser’s worst day in business was having to close down Glasser Images.

“As a young man, Jack Glasser started a business in Bismarck, employed many good people, served thousands of customers, and was successful for more than a decade and a half,” O’Keeffe said. “When the Covid-19 pandemic happened, and without the ability to hold wedding gatherings, the photography business quickly spiraled downward. They simply could not continue. Since closing the doors, Jack and Jace have made extraordinary efforts to distribute the photography and videos to their valued clients. They sincerely hope this settlement agreement brings much needed closure.”