Forgery

Forgery is a prevalent white-collar offense. It occurs when you provide a false seal or signature or provide counterfeited documents with fraudulent intent. This offense can result in dire consequences if the court finds you guilty. The penalties include a lengthy jail or prison sentence and a hefty court fine. You could suffer other consequences, including severe immigration consequences since forgery is a crime of moral turpitude.

To avoid those consequences if you are facing forgery charges in Pasadena, you can seek the help of a competent criminal attorney to help you fight for a favorable outcome. We have extensive training and experience handling all kinds of white-collar crimes at Pasadena Criminal Attorney. We could be the help, support, and counsel you need to navigate the complex legal processes successfully, defend your rights, and fight for a fair resolution of your case. Our competent team can compel the judge to reduce or drop your charges.

The Legal Definition of Forgery

When you falsify a seal, signature, or document for fraud, you commit a grave offense that could result in severe consequences upon conviction. Fraud occurs when you use intentional deception to obtain an unfair or unlawful advantage over another person or entity. It could also happen when you attempt or succeed in depriving another person of their legal right. Forgery is a fraud-related offense. This is why it is one of the most seriously punished offenses under the law. However, the prosecutor must demonstrate all the elements of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt for the court to find you guilty.

The elements of forgery are under PC 470. They constitute all the facts of your case that prove you committed forgery. In criminal cases, the prosecutor bears the burden of proof. Thus, they must prove all these elements to obtain a guilty verdict:

You committed any of the following actions:

That you signed another person’s name without their authorization
You forged or counterfeited a seal or signature on a legal document
You faked another person’s handwriting on a legal document.
You changed or falsified a valid document, like a court record or will
You falsified, altered, or forged crucial documents

You did so to defraud an individual or a company.

With so many ways to commit forgery, you could be confused when charges are brought against you because of something you did or failed to do. You need a skilled attorney to review your case and help you understand the legal implications of your charges. They will also consider developing a solid defense to push for a favorable outcome.

Remember that forgery requires you to have acted with fraudulent intent. This is a crucial element that the prosecutor must prove to obtain a guilty verdict. In this case, acting with a fraudulent intent means the following:

That your actions were meant to lie or deceive another person or company
You acted that way to deprive the person or company of their money, valuable property, or legal right

It is not necessary that you defrauded a person or company to face charges under PC 470. The prosecutor does not need to demonstrate that a person or business suffered the loss of a legal right, money, or property for the judge to pass a guilty verdict. What matters, and what the prosecutor needs to show, is your intent and what could have happened if your action were successful.

Example: When Sammy is dismissed for insubordination, he is very angry with the company and vows to make them pay. When the manager hands him his last pay, Sammy changes the amount in the check to fraudulently obtain more from the company than he deserves. However, this is discovered in time, and Sammy is arrested and charged with forgery.

Sammy is guilty under PC 470 because he attempted to defraud his former employer and the bank of a substantial amount through an altered check. He is still guilty despite not benefiting from his fraudulent acts.

Possible Penalties and Other Consequences of a Conviction Under PC 470

PC 470 is a wobbler offense. This means that the prosecutor can file a misdemeanor or felony charge against you based on the facts of your case and your criminal history. Felony charges have greater consequences than misdemeanor charges.

If the prosecutor files a misdemeanor charge and the court finds you guilty, you will likely receive the following penalties:

Misdemeanor probation
One year in jail
A fine of $1,000

On the other hand, a felony conviction will result in the following criminal penalties:

Felony probation
Three years in a county jail
A maximum of $10,000 in court fines

Typically, prosecutors file felony charges for forgery. However, the prosecutor can file misdemeanor charges against you under the following circumstances:

The document you forged is a money order, check, or a similar document.
You intended to defraud the alleged victim at no more than $950.

If the judge sentences you to jail, you will start your sentence right after sentencing. A one-year jail sentence for a misdemeanor or up to three years in jail for a felony could deprive you of the freedom to work, go to school, run your business, or enjoy the company of your loved ones. If you previously had a good job, you could lose it and the ability to care for your family’s needs. You could lose the support of your family and friends, mainly if you serve a longer jail sentence. Hence, hiring the best criminal defense attorney to help with your case is necessary. They can improve your chances of obtaining a favorable outcome for your case.

If the evidence against you is compelling, your attorney can negotiate for probation instead of jail time. If the judge agrees, they will sentence you to misdemeanor or felony probation, depending on your charges. A misdemeanor probation will last from one to three years, while a felony probation can last up to five years. Although you serve a probation sentence while out of jail, you must abide by strict probation conditions that could make your life difficult. The judge sets these conditions and orders you to abide by them throughout probation. Examples of probation conditions you could receive after a forgery conviction include:

To participate in community service
Not to commit any crime while on probation.
To submit periodic reports to the court about your progress (for misdemeanor probation) or meet regularly with your probation officer for evaluation (for felony probation).
To undergo treatment or rehabilitation for any condition that could have led to the violation
To pay restitution to the victim

Violating a probation condition is a grave offense. It could result in additional criminal charges and a revocation of your probation. Thus, your attorney will remain by your side to ensure you serve your probation successfully. When a violation occurs, and the judge calls a hearing, they could reinstate your probation with stricter conditions or revoke it altogether. If the latter happens, the judge will send you to jail for the period recommended for your offense under the law.

Other Consequences of a Conviction

Forgery and other fraud-related convictions can result in life-changing consequences. For example, a conviction record will remain in your criminal history for years, affecting various aspects of your life. Since criminal records are publicly available, this can affect you in many ways. People who conduct background checks, like employers and landlords, make critical decisions based on what they find. You could miss a crucial job opportunity due to a forgery conviction record, regardless of your qualifications. If a landlord does not rent to ex-convicts, you could miss a chance to rent or lease in your preferred neighborhood.

Forgery is also a crime of moral turpitude because it is fraud-related. Crims of moral turpitude result in severe immigration consequences for immigrants living and working in California. It means that a conviction can result in your removal from the country or being marked inadmissible by the immigration department. If an immigration court rules that you should be deported, it will happen right after serving your sentence. The deportation can be temporary or permanent, depending on the circumstances of your case. If you are marked as inadmissible, immigration will not allow you into the country once you leave for whatever reason.

A felony conviction for forgery will also affect your gun rights. Although you can obtain or keep a gum in California with the proper permits, there are exceptions. One of the exceptions applies to felons. A conviction for any felony offense makes you ineligible to possess or purchase a firearm. If you have one, you must sell it right after your conviction or surrender it to the authorities.

Expungement of Your Conviction Record

The consequences of a damaging criminal record are severe. However, you can use expungement to start life afresh after serving your sentence for forgery. Expungement means that the court erases that particular conviction from your criminal history, rendering it inaccessible to anyone who will conduct a background check on you. It means you could still find a suitable job or a good house to rent, regardless of your criminal history after expungement.

To benefit from expungement, you must file a petition with the same court where your conviction occurred. The judge will review your request and your performance while on probation to grant or deny your petition. Your attorney can assist you in preparing and filing the petition to improve your chances of success.

You must meet all the requirements for the court to grant your petition. They include a successful completion of probation without a violation and no criminal arrest or pending convictions. If you apply for expungement while still on probation, you must first request the court to suspend your probation.

The benefits of expungement are profound since it eliminates all the negative consequences and disabilities of a criminal conviction. However, you can only file for expungement for one conviction at a time. If you have prior convictions, they could still affect your life even after a successful expungement for forgery. A skilled attorney will help you through the necessary processes for a fresh start in life.

Statute of Limitation for Forgery Cases

The statute of limitations provides timelines within which a particular criminal case must be brought before a judge. A violation of this statute can result in case dismissal. In forgery cases, the timelines depend on your charges, whether felony or misdemeanor. If the circumstances of your case satisfy the requirements for a misdemeanor charge, the prosecutor must file your case within a year of the crime. However, if your charges are a felony, the prosecutor must file the case within four years of its occurrence or discovery. The prosecutor must obtain sufficient evidence within that time and follow through with all court processes before filing your case. You, too, must be prepared with defense to improve your chances of success.

Legal Defense Strategies

The benefit of a criminal trial is that you can defend yourself against your charges for a fair resolution. The judge relies on evidence from the prosecution and defense teams to make the final ruling in a case. You can also bring an attorney for legal representation and to defend your rights. Although forgery is a grave offense with severe consequences upon conviction, you can change the outcome of your case through proper defense. Your attorney can use various defense strategies to compel the judge to drop or reduce your charges. Some of the techniques that could help your case include the following:

You Did Not Have Fraudulent Intent

Forgery occurs when you falsify information on a legal document or forge a document with fraudulent intent. The intent is a crucial element that the prosecutor must demonstrate beyond a reasonable doubt to obtain a conviction. If the false document or information was a mistake, and you can prove that you did not have fraudulent intent, the court will drop your charges.

Proving intent is a significant challenge for prosecutors. It is difficult to precisely tell a person’s intent by reviewing their actions or inactions. This makes it easy for experienced criminal attorneys to weaken a prosecutor’s case to obtain a favorable outcome for their clients.

Your attorney can argue that you only tried to prank the other person without intent to deprive them of anything. It could also be that you made a careless mistake or genuinely believed that the information or document you provided was correct. This will compel the judge to dismiss your case.

You Are Falsely Accused

Forgery allegations are common in business and legal dealings. They mainly occur in workplaces where contracts are signed and payments are made in checks. One person can accuse another of forgery if a deal goes against their favor or in an attempt to cover their guilt when they make a costly mistake in a business transaction. When that happens, an innocent person can serve a lengthy sentence and face severe consequences for a crime they did not commit in the first place.

A skilled attorney will investigate your case and gather compelling evidence to counter the prosecutor’s case if you face false accusations. Your attorney can use recorded communications, eyewitness accounts, or video surveillance to provide concrete evidence in the case and clear your name. If they successfully prove your innocence, the judge will drop your charges.

The Prosecutor Has Insufficient Evidence

Remember that the prosecutor bears the burden of proof in criminal cases. They must demonstrate all the elements of an offense using compelling evidence for the court to find a defendant guilty. If this does not happen in your case, your attorney can cite insufficient evidence to compel the judge to dismiss your case.

Your attorney can use this strategy if the prosecutor fails to demonstrate how you forged or falsified information. They can also use it if the prosecutor cannot prove that you had fraudulent intent. The judge can dismiss your case and order the prosecutor to obtain compelling evidence before refiling the case. If the prosecutor cannot make a solid case against you, the court will dismiss all your charges.

The Police Misconducted Themselves During Arrest or Case Investigation

The police play a crucial role in the criminal justice system. In addition to apprehending suspected offenders, they investigate cases and provide evidence for the prosecution team. The judge relies on that evidence to deliver the final ruling. However, the police must abide by their code of ethics to ensure that criminal processes are fair and justice is served. They must not violate suspected offenders' rights and be reasonable and fair when handling defendants. However, sometimes, the police violate their code of ethics when handling defendants. This must be considered during the trial to ensure the judge serves justice by the end of the case.

If the police obtained evidence through violence, force, or tricks, the judge must dismiss it from the trial. The judge should do the same if the police violated your rights. During arrest, officers must inform you of your Miranda rights and should refrain from questioning you without your attorney.

When the police misconduct themselves and the judge dismisses evidence gathered through that misconduct, the prosecutor could be left with insufficient evidence to obtain a guilty verdict. An intelligent attorney will use that opportunity to push for a case dismissal.

Forgery and Related Offenses

The law has several other offenses that are closely related to PC 470. The prosecutor must consider these offenses, too, when determining whether to charge you with forgery only or with forgery and another crime. Their decision is mainly based on the circumstances of your case. The offenses that are closely related to forgery are:

Credit Card Fraud

You commit credit card fraud under PC 484f when you forge or falsify credit card information for fraudulent purposes. This, too, is a wobbler offense, which the prosecutor can charge as a felony or misdemeanor. You can commit this crime in many ways, including altering a genuine credit card number online to avoid paying a retailer.

When prosecuting this offense, the prosecutor must demonstrate that you knowingly falsified or forged credit card information. They must also demonstrate your fraudulent intent. If the court finds you guilty of a misdemeanor, you will serve a one-year jail sentence or probation. However, if you are guilty of a felony, you will serve a three-year jail sentence or felony probation.

Credit card fraud and forgery are fraud-related offenses.

Check Fraud

Check fraud under PC 476 occurs when you fraudulently make, utter, publish, or pass a fake or falsified check to obtain goods or services. You can commit this offense when you write another person’s name in a check instead of your name when paying for a good or service. The offense is also a wobbler. A misdemeanor is punishable by a year in jail, and a felony is punishable by three years.

Check fraud is also a fraud-related offense, just like forgery. If the document you are accused of forging is a check, the prosecutor can file two separate charges for forgery and check fraud. This could result in two separate penalties, which you must serve consecutively.

Selling or Producing Counterfeit Goods

PC 350 prohibits the sale or manufacture of counterfeit trademarks. This general offense could apply to those who sell forged documents. The main difference between forgery and PC 350 is that the prosecutor does not need to prove your fraudulent intent when charging you for selling or producing counterfeit goods.

Find Competent Criminal Defense Services Near Me

If you face forgery charges in Pasadena, you could suffer severe consequences if a court finds you guilty. Forgery is a grave offense that could result in a lengthy jail sentence and a hefty court fine. Additional consequences apply, including the loss of your gun rights and severe immigration consequences. However, you can obtain a favorable outcome for your case if you put up a solid defense against your charges.

We have the right skills and experience to develop the best defense for your charges at Pasadena Criminal Attorney. We have excellent skills in handling all kinds of white-collar crimes. Thus, we could use our best fighting strategies to compel the judge to drop or reduce your charges. We will also defend your rights and offer you the guidance and support you need during the most challenging time of your life. Call us at 626-689-2277 to learn about your charges and options.