Consequences Of Criminal Records
How to Deal with Imposters and Bankruptcy
Here are some important tips on How to contact and protect yourself against criminal record fraud, for shoppers and merchants.
What do I do about criminal records made in my name?
Although procedures to correct your record within criminal justice databases vary from state to state, and even from county to county, the following information can be used as a general guide.If criminal violations are wrongfully attributed to your name, contact the arresting or citing law enforcement agency - that is, the police or sheriff's department that originally arrested the person using your identity, or the court agency that issued the warrant for the arrest. File an impersonation report to confirm your identity. The police department may take a full set of your fingerprints and your photograph, and copies any photo identification documents like your driver's license, passport or visa. They should compare the prints and photographs with those of the imposter to establish your innocence. If the arrest warrant is from a state or county other than where you live, ask your local police department to send the impersonation report to the police department in the jurisdiction where the arrest warrant, traffic citation or criminal conviction originated.
The law enforcement agency should then recall any warrants and issue a "clearance letter" or certificate of release (if you were arrested/booked). You'll need to keep this document with you at all times in case you're wrongly arrested. Also, ask the law enforcement agency to file, with the district attorney's (D.A.) office and/or court where the crime took place, the record of the follow-up investigation establishing your innocence. This will result in an amended complaint being issued. Once your name is recorded in a criminal database, it's unlikely that it will be completely removed from the official record. Ask that the "key name," or "primary name," be changed from your name to the imposter's name (or to "John Doe" if the imposter's true identity is not known), with your name noted only as an alias.
You'll also want to clear your name in the court records. You'll need to determine which state law(s) will help you do this and how. If your state has no formal procedure for clearing your record, contact the D.A.'s office in the county where the case was originally prosecuted. Ask the D.A.'s office for the appropriate court records needed to clear your name.
Finally, contact your state DMV to find out if your driver's license is being used by the identity thief. Ask that your files be flagged for possible fraud.
You may need to hire a criminal defense attorney to help you clear your name. Contact Legal Services in your state or your local bar association for help in finding an attorney.