Facing Charges of Forgery Theft?

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In today's world, a person's identity carries considerable weight, and more than ever is open to theft by a variety of illegal actions. Forgery is one of these means, and is defined as making or changing documents or items in order to trick or deceive another. Examples of forgery include signing someone else's check without their permission in order to cash it, or creating false or altered documents in order to deceive someone in a fraud case.

What are the related laws?

Forgery is an identity theft crime. The Texas Penal Code defines forgery in §32.21 and begins with the definition “to alter, make, complete, execute, or authenticate any writing so that it purports: to be the act of another who did not authorize the act, to have been executed at a time or place or in a numbered sequence other than was in fact the case, or, to be a copy of an original when no original existed. A person commits an offense if he or she forges a writing with intent to defraud or harm another.”

Offenses typically arise when one person signs another person’s name without permission or one person writes a check on another person’s account without permission. However, the offense can happen in many different ways. One person can ask another to cash a check for known to be fraudulent. Occasionally, someone will add an extra zero to a check or financial instrument.

Legislative Mandated Penalty Ranges for Forgery Cases in Texas

In Texas, forgery is considered a white collar crime and can potentially carry substantial punishment if convicted, depending on the severity of the crime and the circumstances. Large fines, jail time, and a life-long mark on your criminal record are all possible if you are found guilty. In a forgery case, it is important to verify that the investigation against you was done correctly and that your rights were upheld at every point. If you have been charged with forgery, our Denton County criminal defense lawyers may be able to do just that, and see that your best interests are looked after in the course of your representation or at trial.