Bill would make Identity Fraud a felony

Wednesday, Feb. 17, 1999 | 2:44 a.m.

SB69, now moving to the Assembly for final action, was proposed by Senate Majority Leader Bill Raggio after he saw a television show on identity theft.

"This is significant, because it's one of the fastest growing crimes in the country," said Raggio, R-Reno. He added that such crimes cost victims an estimated $748 million last year.

"That's just the monetary cost. There's no way to measure the distress of these victims and their families," he said, adding that victims often are unaware of such crimes until long after a thief has cashed in on their good credit.

SB60 makes it a felony to use someone else's name for illegal purposes, or to conspire to commit identity theft, punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

Law enforcement representatives, storeowners, district attorneys and public defenders all favored of the measure.

Credit cards are a typical target of identity thieves, but proponents of SB60 say authorities often see cases involving people trying to avoid criminal prosecution.

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