CRIME IN AN EASY CHAIR

All of us have heard about someone getting a credit card in someone else’s name and causing them all kinds of trouble to correct the damage. I have also heard of people that make a living by getting other people’s bank account numbers and start taking money out of that person’s account. The above listed crimes are forms of identity theft. These types of crimes can be just as devastating to the victim as someone using a gun to rob them. Often the money lost will be far more than an armed robber will take from you. Many times the victims of identity theft don’t even they are being victimized until they get a bank or credit card statement. With the use of computers, criminals can sit back in an easy chair and do their dirty work in comfort. There is a bill before the Oklahoma state legislature that if passed could remove some of that comfort.

State Rep. David Derby has introduced House Bill 1622 that would increase the penalty of identity theft by 10 fold in some instances. The current penalty is just a $1,000 fine and one year in prison. Under the new legislation if a person steals over $500 they would face a fine of up to $5,000 and 10 years in prison. Also, for the first time in Oklahoma law, the bill establishes a penalty for possession of paraphernalia that could be used to commit identity theft, making that crime a misdemeanor.