The Securities and Exchange Commission has filed a civil suit against the family that operated the Reserve Fund.

Like all money market funds, the Reserve Fund was supposed to be a completely safe option for your money, with the price of a share fixed at a dollar. No one had ever lost a single cent in a money market account -- until the Reserve Fund "broke the buck" by devaluing shares below a dollar around September 2008.

The Bent family, which founded the fund, was not running a scam like Bernie Madoff. They simply made mistakes with the money and then let the situation spiral out of control. For example, they withheld money from Reserve Fund accounts to fight lawsuits. That's an outrageous abuse of the public trust, according to Clark.

And its precisely why he believes criminal charges should be filed in addition to civil charges.

But it's important to know that the Reserve Fund debacle was a total anomaly that involved one particular money market fund. In general, money market funds remain a safe option for your money.

In fact, the federal government is now guaranteeing money market funds through September 2009.