Every federal criminal charge is serious and should be taken seriously. If you are facing accusations of or charges for federal identity theft, it is important to talk to a federal defense attorney. You can do so by contacting Chambers Law Firm at 714-760-4088 for a free legal consultation. In the meantime, read on to learn about potential penalties for and charges of identity theft.
Potential penalties for federal charges of identity theft
The maximum penalties for a federal identity theft conviction range from three distinct maximums depending on the facts and circumstances of the case. The following are possible sanctions.
If someone is found guilty of federal identity theft that involves creating or transferring identities, forging papers, or possessing tools to create documents, they might face a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison.
The maximum sentence is imposed if the offender obtained cash or goods worth up to $1,000; a conviction for identity theft that involved drug trafficking, a violent crime, or a prior conviction for identity theft carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; a conviction for identity theft that involved a connection to a means of aiding or committing terrorism carries a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison.
If further crimes were allegedly committed, prison sentence for a conviction may also be merged with those charges. Any claims of engaging in drug trafficking, violent crime, terrorism, or other federal offenses will give rise to separate criminal charges, which may result in a longer sentence if proven guilty. If you’re being accused of something like this, be careful to mount the strongest possible defense.
Defense options against charges of federal identity theft
Contact Chambers Law Firm if you are being investigated for identity theft or identification fraud so that we can help you make important early choices about how to deal with investigators or federal prosecutors. To avoid official criminal charges, maybe we can compromise before filing.
A prosecution must establish that the defendant acted with knowledge and intention in order to get a conviction for a felony connected to federal identity theft.
Protections against federal identity theft
Since identity theft needs fraudulent purpose, the unintentional use of another person’s identity may be defended by the lack of malicious intent. A precise intent is what we call this intention. The accused may utilize that defense to contest the mental state requirement for a conviction if there is no obvious intent to defraud and it can be established that the claimed use was an error.
If the judge finds that the government violated the accused’s constitutional rights while conducting the investigation or acquiring the evidence, the evidence cannot be utilized in court.
This is accomplished by submitting and effectively arguing a motion. What if police gathered evidence against the defendant without a warrant or through a legal loophole that circumvented the Fourth Amendment’s warrant requirement? The lawsuit may thus be completely dismissed if such evidence were to be rejected. If there is no question about guilt, we would bargain for a good plea deal.
The words of the accused might be suppressed after a successful motion if he was interrogated without being advised of his Miranda rights, which are the right to keep quiet.
