Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

I am currently fighting a very serious case of identity theft. The State of California has determined that there are multiple people working under my SSN and name/DOB combination, one was caught due to working while I was on unemployment. After I found out my drivers license was suspended when I got married and attempted to change my name the DMV did an investigation and found that someone had given my name when involved in an auto accident that did not result in the police being called, but of course had no insurance. Someone is visiting hospitals with my name, taking out payday loans, turning on utilities and has even rented and been evicted from an apartment.

The worst happened last night. I went to court over a speeding ticket I had received, and became aware that a red light ticket was added on calendar as well. All is well and good, they are legitimately both my tickets. Then I get to court and find there are multiple other tickets added on for fare evasion (cited and released) and failure to appear warrants! Luckily I always carry my current police reports and other documentation with me when I go to court JUST IN CASE something like this comes up.

When I plead not guilty to the charges by the mystery person(s) using my identity I explained why to the judge. He took a handwriting sample and a thumbprint and excused himself. He came back and said the handwriting is similar, that the person cited was NOT cited for no ID so they have to have a copy of my DL, but said nothing of the thumbprint. He threatened to throw me in jail for the failure to appears but luckily did not.

At this point I have to go to trial, but the person who did this obviously resembles me and as the judge says the officer will probably pick me out of the crowd due to the person looking like me, presumably if they don't have a fake picture on the DL they are using. He says if I don't come up with a suspect that I will be thrown in jail.

What can I POSSIBLY do to clear my name? These are infractions turned into misdemeanors and I have been told to just plead guilty and take the hit because the judge will probably find me guilty and then charge me with perjury if he thinks I am lying.


Asked on 2/20/13, 2:37 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Terry A. Nelson Nelson & Lawless

You have NO easy solution to your problem. ID theft like this is difficult to prove and 'unwind' yourself from. You are always entitled to represent yourself in court. Whether you should is a different issue. The conventional wisdom is that an attorney will be able to do a better job and get a better outcome. Prosecutors and judges don�t like dealing with ProPers, unless you are simply pleading guilty, not defending the case.

You are going to have to prepare to defend yourself with 'proof' from other agencies regarding the ID theft, witnesses, documents, etc. AND, this won't be the last time. It will keep happening until you clear your criminal ID history with specific court orders, and probably your civil court and credit history as well. This could take a long time and a lot of effort.

If serious about hiring counsel to help in this, and if this is in SoCal courts, feel free to contact me. I�ll be happy to help fight and get the best outcome possible.

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Answered on 2/20/13, 3:02 pm


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