SPONSOR: Rep. Price & Sen. Sokola
Reps. Brady, Buckworth, DiPinto, B. Ennis, Ewing, Keeley, Maier, Schroeder, Spence, VanSant, Viola, Wagner; Sens. Blevins, Henry, Simpson, Sorenson
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
140th GENERAL ASSEMBLY
HOUSE BILL NO. 437
AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO IDENTITY THEFT.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE:
Section 1. Amend Chapter 5 of Title 11 of the Delaware Code by adding thereto a new section to read:
"§854. Identity theft; class E felony; class D felony.
(a) A person commits identity theft when the person knowingly or recklessly obtains, produces, possesses, uses, sells, gives, or transfers personal identifying information belonging or pertaining to another person without the consent of the other person and with intent to use the information for an unlawful purpose, including obtaining or attempting to obtain credit, money, goods, services, medical information, financial information, or anything else of value, or with intent to use the information to commit or facilitate any crime set forth in this title.
(b) A person commits identity theft when the person knowingly or recklessly obtains, produces, possesses, uses, sells, gives, or transfers personal identifying information belonging or pertaining to another person without the consent of the other person, thereby knowingly or recklessly facilitating the use of the information by a third person for an unlawful purpose, including obtaining or attempting to obtain credit, money, goods, services, medical information, financial information, or anything else of value, or for the commission of any crime set forth in this title.
(c) For the purposes of this section, 'personal identifying information' includes name, address, birth date, Social Security number, driver's license number, telephone number, financial services account number, savings account number, checking account number, credit card number, debit card number, identification document or false identification document, electronic identification number, educational record, health care record, financial record, credit record, employment record, e-mail address, computer system password, mother's maiden name, or similar personal number, record, or information.
(d) Identity theft is a class E felony, unless the victim is 62 years of age or older, in which case identity theft is a class D felony.
(e) When a person is convicted of or pleads guilty to identity theft, the sentencing judge shall order full restitution for monetary loss, including documented loss of wages and reasonable attorney fees, suffered by the victim.
(f) Prosecution under this section does not preclude prosecution or sentencing under any other section of this Code."
Section 2. Amend §828, Chapter 5, Title 11 of the Delaware Code by adding thereto immediately after the phrase "offense of such character." the following:
"(4) The offense of identity theft, such as a credit card, driver license, or other document issued in a name other than the name of the person who possesses the document."
Section 3. Amend §9401(1), Title 11 of the Delaware Code by adding "854. Identity theft; class E felony; class D felony." between the phrases "851. Receiving stolen property; class G felony; class A misdemeanor." and "861. Forgery; class F felony;" as they appear therein.
Section 4. If any provision of this Act or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of the Act which can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to that end the provisions of this Act are declared to be severable.
Identity theft is a particularly invidious type of financial fraud. Victims rarely know the problem exists until they receive outrageous credit card statements or bad credit reports. Although financial loss may be only $50 per credit card, a victim may spend years trying to clear his or her credit rating. An identity thief can easily obtain identifying information about a victim by stealing a wallet, pulling credit card slips and pre-approved credit offers from a trash bin, stealing mail from the victim's mailbox, "shoulder surfing" at ATM machines and phone booths, filling out a change-of-address card so that the victim's mail goes to a drop box, and by posing as a loan officer or landlord and ordering a copy of the victim's credit report.
Section 1 of the bill defines identity theft, which has been a federal crime since October 30, 1998. It provides two felony levels for the crime: (1) an E felony (up to 5 years in prison) if the victim is under 62 years old, and (2) a D felony (up to 8 years in prison) if the victim is 62 or older. When a person is convicted of identity theft, the sentencing judge must order full restitution, including documented loss of wages and reasonable attorney fees.
Section 2 of the bill adds the offense of identity theft to 11 Del. C. §828: Possession of burglar's tools or instruments facilitating theft.
Section 3 of the bill adds identity theft to the list of offenses involving property that are covered under the Victims' Bill of Rights.
Section 4 is the standard severability clause.