News Room: SB 612: Identity Theft Trial Location

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has signed SB 612 by Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto), giving victims of identity theft a better opportunity to obtain justice by allowing identity theft cases to be prosecuted in the county where the victim lives – which is not always the location of where the crime occurs. “Protecting the personal information of every Californian is very important to me and I am committed to strong laws that safeguard every individual’s privacy and prevent identity theft. This common sense legislation will lead to more prosecutions of this terrible crime and anyone that commits or even thinks of committing identity theft should know that they will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” Governor Schwarzenegger said. read more ...

California has passed a law that makes it easier to prosecute identity thieves. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed Senate Bill 612 into law this week. It allows prosecutors to charge people with identity theft in the jurisdictions where the victims live. Without the bill, prosecutions could only take place where the crime occurred, which is usually in the perpetrators' towns or cities. "That may make sense if it's in an old-fashioned property crime like a burglary, or even an auto theft," said Sen. Joe Simitian, a Palo Alto Democrat who sponsored the bill. "If an identity thief in Los Angeles goes online and steals the identity of a half dozen people in San Jose, the crime [had] to be prosecuted in L.A. That makes no sense at all, and, of course, it makes prosecution altogether unlikely." read more ...

Sacramento - State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto) announced today the Governor’s signature of his Senate Bill (SB) 612 which gives victims of identity theft a better opportunity to obtain justice. “As criminals adapt technology to devise new ways to steal, the state must adapt its laws to prosecute them,” said Simitian. read more ...

Sacramento - “As criminals adapt technology to devise new ways to steal, the state must adapt its laws to prosecute them,” said State Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto), praising Senate approval of his Senate Bill (SB) 612, which would give victims of identity theft a better opportunity to obtain justice. Simitian introduced SB 612, which passed 40-0, to allow identity theft to be prosecuted in the county in which the victim lives, which is not always the case now. Current law permits prosecution in the county in which the theft occurred or the county in which the information was illegally used, both of which may be hundreds of miles away from the victim’s home. read more ...

The California State Senate passed a bill Friday that would allow prosecution for identity theft cases in the county where the victim resides. State Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, co-authored Senate Bill 612 and praised fellow senators Friday for voting 40-0 in favor of the legislation. read more ...