In Colorado, the crime of forgery can range from a class 1 misdemeanor to a class 5 felony, depending on the circumstances. The penalties for felony forgery can potentially be multiple years in prison, time in jail, and/or paying a fine of up to $100, 000. Of course, having a criminal record of any kind can have a significant impact on your life, but felonies in particular can yield serious long-term consequences. For example, if you are convicted of a felony, you can no longer purchase or carry a firearm, and are restricted from practicing in several types of professions. However, even misdemeanor forgery can have a serious impact on your life. When it comes down to it, forgery of any kind is a crime of dishonesty. Many employers are often hesitant to hire someone convicted of such a crime, regardless of whether it is a misdemeanor or a felony. For this reason, being convicted of a forgery charge of any kind can significantly limit your future employment opportunities.
Having an experienced Colorado Springs forgery defense lawyer such as attorney and former prosecutor Peakstone Law Group on your side will greatly increase your chance of getting a positive outcome from your case. Having an attorney from a knowledgeable and successful law firm such as Peakstone Law Group, LLC fight for you in court can help you get your charges lowered, or possibly even dropped altogether. The potential penalties and other long-term consequences of a forgery conviction are serious and require the skills of an experienced lawyer. Attorney Peakstone Law Group is a trial lawyer with years of experience effectively representing clients with cases like yours. He and his team provide excellent legal representation to people charged with forgery in Colorado Springs and the surrounding areas, and they would be pleased to discuss your case and concerns with you during a free case evaluation.
There are several felony forgery crimes in the state of Colorado. Under Colorado Revised Statute § 18-5-102, it is a class 5 felony to forge certain items. A person commits felony forgery if they intend to defraud by making, changing, or using a certain written “instrument” that is not what it purports to be. These instruments include, but are not limited to: Money, checks, stamps, stocks, bonds, deeds, wills, contracts, assignments, lottery tickets, commercial instruments, promissory notes, securities, public records, public service tokens, and certificates. Practically speaking, this often involves forging a signature on a document or alteration of a document. Very often, forgery charges are charged with other similar crimes such as identity theft or fraud.
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Criminal possession of a forged instrument is also a felony. It is a class 6 felony to possess any of the items described above with intent to defraud and knowledge that they were forged. Additionally, it is a class 6 felony to knowingly possess any equipment that is designed to create forged products.
There are also misdemeanor forgery crimes that a person can be charged with in Colorado. For example, it is a class 1 misdemeanor to use a forged academic record. Use of a forged academic record is committed by anyone who makes, changes, or uses a fake academic record with the intent of gaining employment, admission to a higher education institution, or a scholarship or financial assistance.
Second degree forgery is also a class 1 misdemeanor under Colorado Revised Statute § 18-5-104, which acts as a catch-all statute for forgery crimes. Second degree forgery is committed by anyone intending to defraud through making, changing, or using any written instrument that is not included in the other forgery statutes. Additionally, just as with felony forgery, it is a crime to possess items with intent to defraud while knowing that the items were forged. Criminal possession of a Second Degree Forged Instrument is a class 2 misdemeanor in Colorado.
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While every forgery case is different, representation from an experienced forgery defense attorney in Colorado Springs gives you a stronger chance to beat or reduce the charges you are facing. An attorney experienced in defending these types of economic crime cases will analyze the case for potential motions issues and the applicability of the elements of the offense to the facts of your case. A good criminal defense lawyer can help you build a defense to your forgery, counterfeiting, or fraud charge, including potentially using handwriting and other experts to establish reasonable doubt in your case.
If you are accused of forgery, even if your case cannot be won on the merits, having an experienced forgery lawyer on your side to speak on your behalf in court and negotiate with the prosecution to strike a favorable plea deal for you is invaluable. As a former prosecutor himself, Attorney Peakstone Law Group is a courtroom lawyer who is exceptionally skilled in negotiating with district attorneys. If you have been charged with forgery of any kind in Colorado Springs, Pueblo, Teller County, Castle Rock, Park County, Fremont County, and the surrounding areas, turn to Peakstone Law Group, LLC today.
Call 719-264-9858 to schedule a completely free consultation at a time convenient for you. Don’t put it off, speak with a knowledgeable Colorado Springs forgery attorney to review the details of your situation today. Life happens. Let us help.If you have been charged with forgery in Pennsylvania, including check fraud, writing bad checks, falsifying documents (electronically or by hand), you face severe punishment. Forging a signature or writing a bad check could mean a first-degree misdemeanor, punishable by up to five years in prison and a $10, 000 fine if you are convicted. Depending on the severity of the crime, you may also be facing a felony.
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Electronic forgeries using software and technology or forging someone’s name with a pen with the intention of defrauding someone are illegal activities, which Pennsylvania treats as serious crimes. Anything from faking documents, credit cards, tokens, checks, currency and money orders can apply under the Chapter 41-01 PA Criminal Code of Forgery and Fraudulent Practices.
But just because you have been charged with a forgery or fraudulent crime, does not mean you are guilty of the crime. Check fraud or forgery must be proven with the intent to defraud another person or institution in order to be proven guilty. There are many instances when people who are accused of forgery did not intentionally defraud anyone – mistakes happen.
In order to present the best possible defense for your case, you should speak to an experienced and aggressive Criminal Fraud Attorney as soon as possible.
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Pennsylvania has strict laws against any type of forgery. According to the PA Criminal Code 41-01, a person guilty of forgery is defined as having the intent to defraud or injure someone or an institution, or has knowledge that he/she is facilitating a fraud or injury to be perpetrated by anyone, by means of:
Forgery can include signing another person’s name on a check, writing a bad check, cashing a bad check, altering the amount on a check, falsifying documents such as an academic transcript, deed or real estate document, falsifying corporate documents or documents used in identity theft such as a driver’s license, and even printing fake money, in which case it is called counterfeiting.
In order for a person to be convicted of committing forgery, it must be proven by the prosecution that the defendant intended to defraud a person or institution (corporation, government institution, etc.) However, proven injury to the innocent party is not required so long as the intent to defraud can be proven.
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There are many instances when a person did not know the documents they possessed or used were fraudulent, such as if a person buys a car they did not know had been stolen and possesses a fake title.
It is important to speak with a Forgery Attorney in Pennsylvania right away if you have been charged with check fraud or forging documents.
A conviction for forgery could send you to prison and cost you thousands in fines, not to mention cause you to lose your job and have a criminal record. Before speaking to anyone, you should contact an aggressive and successful criminal attorney, like David Shrager.
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Certain types of forgery may mean that you could be prosecuted both at the state level and in U.S. Federal Courts and will need a qualified Federal Crime Attorney.
For instance, identity theft, counterfeiting money, forging federal documents (immigration, military) and forging documents with the intent to defraud the federal government are all prosecuted under federal jurisdiction.
The United States Criminal Code lists 45 statutes covering fraud, so it is important to find a knowledgeable and experienced Federal Crime Attorney to defend your charges. Federal crimes come with serious consequences, upon conviction. If you have been charged for allegedly committing a federal crime, contact Shrager Defense Attorneys today.
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Penalties for a federal conviction of forgery depend on the severity of the crime, but if you are convicted, you will have a felony on your criminal record, which can be accessed by future employers, landlords and lenders, making the future very difficult in finding loans, jobs and housing.
A conviction for forgery
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