Schwarzenegger Signs New Identity Theft Legislation

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has signed SB 612 by Senator Joe Simitian (D-Palo Alto), which allows victims of identity theft to have identity theft cases prosecuted in the county where they live which is often not the location of the crime. Current law allows for the prosecution of identity theft in the county where the theft occurred or the county in which information was illegally used, both of which may be hundreds of miles away from the victim’s home. This legislation permits local county prosecutors to pursue a resident’s identity theft case even when the crime may have occurred somewhere else. “This common sense legislation will lead to more prosecutions of this terrible crime and anyone that commits or even thinks of committing identity theft should know that they will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” Gov. Schwarzenegger said.