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ID theft law aids victims
Free police report will be available
BY EDWARD MUNGER JR. Gazette Reporter
Reach Gazette reporter Edward Munger Jr. at 843-2830 or emunger@dailygazette.net.

   A new state law will make it easier for identity theft victims to negotiate their way to recovery, according to the state Consumer Protection Board.
   People can now pay police agencies anywhere from $10 to more than $20 for a simple police report. Under the new law, people who learned or reasonably suspect their personal information was used unlawfully are able to get that report for free.
   With a police report in hand, identity theft victims can get records and receipts from stores, credit card companies and other businesses.
   A police report also allows victims to initiate a security freeze from credit bureaus, according to the Consumer Protection Board.
   “It’s a powerful tool for consumers,” said Lisa Harris, deputy director and general counsel for the state Consumer Protection Board.
   The text of the law also indicates an expansion of prosecutorial powers as they relate to identity theft. The law states prosecution can take place in any county where the offense took place regardless of whether the perpetrator was in that county.
   Prosecution can also take place in the county where the victim resided at the time of the offense, or in the county where the person’s personal information was used criminally.
   According to a press release from the Consumer Protection Board, more than 16,400 people in New York reported some form of identity theft in 2006. Nationwide, the Federal Trade Commission study showed that identity theft cost $33 billion with the average loss of $10,200 per victim.
   The board in its press release stated that in some cases, police agencies were “not aware of the importance of this piece of paper or, for other reasons, they were reluctant to encourage victims to actually file a report for identity theft.”
   Harris said many identity theft cases are handled by victims themselves while police take care of more serious and immediate crimes.
   Amsterdam Police Detective Lt. Thomas DiMezza said the department there typically gives victims a report for free.
   “We always encourage people to file reports, we want to know, fi rst of all, if that’s happening and [if] it’s happening in our community,” Di-Mezza said.
   “We would look into it and if the victim gets made whole by either the bank or some type of financial institution, then we don’t go much further into it,” DiMezza said.
   Charging victims for a police report, DiMezza said, is “just adding insult to injury.”
   “Most of the guys use discretion with those things. You’re certainly not going to charge them $10 for a report after they’ve just lost $10,000 in an identity theft,” DiMezza said.