Around 450,000 people in the US face criminal charges for forgery every year (Associated Press). It's one of the more common forms of fraud. Offenders face steep penalties of up to 10 years jail time and fines of up to $25,000.
The crime affects many areas, including finance, real estate, contracts, checks, purchase orders, and the art market.
What is Forgery?
Common law forgery in Pennsylvania includes these essential elements:
- Altering any writing without a person's authority
- Presenting that writing as the act of another person who didn't authorize the act
- Executing a false document at a time, place, or number sequence other than factual
- Copying an original writing when an original didn't exist
- Utter a writing knowingly forged
A “writing” includes numerous entities such as money, coins, stamps, credit cards, trademarks, etc.
The crime involves falsely making or altering a legal document with the specific intent to defraud. Generally, the forger seeks to access personal records or bank accounts. The most basic example is the unauthorized use or reproduction of someone's signature.
The crime may also involve creating fraudulent or fake documents. For example, uttering forgery takes place when someone tries to use a fake ID to buy alcohol.
Forgery vs. Identity Fraud
Forgery differs from identity theft because it focuses on creating or altering signatures or documents. Identity theft, however, is when someone steals personal information, such as name, social security number, or financial details.
Equally important, forgery may not always involve the theft of a person's complete identity. Instead, it focuses on replicating a signature. On the other hand, identity fraud consists of the theft of a person's identity, including personal details beyond the signature.
Three Types of Forgery
Forgeries generally take three forms:
- Document Forgery: This involves the creation or alteration of documents such as contracts, wills, deeds, or financial instruments.
- Art Forgery: Creating or altering artwork to deceive buyers or collectors. The goal is to deceive the buyer into thinking the artwork is an original by a specific artist.
- Signature Forgery: The unauthorized imitation or alteration of signatures on documents, checks, or other instruments for fraudulent purposes
Methods Used by Forgers
Forgers employ various techniques to carry out their deceitful activities. Those tactics include handwriting replication, printing, or copying documents. They can also involve altering documents using chemical or digital methods.
In some cases, perpetrators use technologies like deep learning algorithms to mimic signatures or handwriting.
Common methods include:
- Free-Hand Simulation: Copying someone's handwriting without any aids. They study a signature and attempt to recreate it using handwriting.
- Trace-Over: Tracing someone's signature to make it look real.
- Blind Forgery: This is when forgers imitate a signature without ever seeing the real one. They attempt to mimic the style and characteristics of another's signature.
- Skilled Forgery: Some forgers use techniques that make it hard to tell the fake from the real thing. In this case, the forger uses advanced writing techniques and signature styles to replicate a signature.
- Electronic Forgery: Misuse of computer networks and the internet to defraud potential victims of identity theft.
- Cross-Site: A cross-site attack tricks users into using their credentials to invoke a state-changing activity. A Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) attack can make unauthorized changes to a user's account, like transferring funds or changing email and password.
Misdemeanor Forgery Charges in Pennsylvania
As mentioned, penalties for forgery are severe. All states classify the act as a felony. However, Pennsylvania criminal law also includes a misdemeanor of the first-degree offense for forgery. Penalties can include jail time, fines, and restitution.
A first-degree misdemeanor covers offenses over $1,000. Punishment includes up to a five-year prison sentence and a maximum fine of $10,000.
Felony Forgery Charges in Pennsylvania
Felony charges in PA include second and third-degree offenses. A second-degree felony covers forged items such as postage, money, or security. You face a prison term of up to ten years, with up to a $25,000 fine.
A third-degree felony is forgeries involving wills, contracts, commercial instruments, or deeds. Penalties extend to a seven-year prison term or a maximum $10,000 fine.
Hire a Criminal Defense Lawyer When Facing Charges
Our criminal defense attorneys are in our Montgomery County law office in Norristown, PA. However, our criminal defense services extend to Bucks and Delaware County clients.
If you require a defense against charges, call our law offices. Our attorneys have the experience to get results.
John S. Han serves as a trial and criminal defense attorney, representing clients facing investigation and prosecution by State and Federal Law Enforcement authorities throughout the Philadelphia metropolitan region, with a particular focus on Montgomery and Bucks Counties.