LANSING – In a move to better protect Michigan residents from the rapidly growing crime of identity theft, the Michigan House of Representatives today passed a plan to toughen penalties for unscrupulous criminals who steal our residents' identities.
"In the wrong hands, a computer can be just as dangerous as any knife or gun," said State Representative Dudley Spade (D-Tipton), the package's sponsor. "In today's digital age, it is easy for a determined criminal to hop on any computer and start stealing residents' sensitive information. I applaud my colleagues in the House for helping us pass this plan and ensuring that our residents are protected from identity theft."
The plan that passed the House today strengthens Michigan's Identity Theft Protection Act by allowing any property or anything of value that is used to commit identity theft to be seized by authorities, and it expands the definition of "racketeering" to include computer crimes and other felonies related to theft, so every individual that's involved with a group of identity thieves can be charged with the same crime. It is designed to take aim at criminals who use computers to steal other people's identities. The plan also allows any equipment that is intended to be used to also be confiscated.
Identity theft has surpassed drug trafficking as the No. 1 crime in the nation, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. The total cost of identity theft in the U.S. in 2006 was $49 billion. Victims paid about $4.5 billion of this, and the rest was paid by merchants and financial institutions. According to the Identity Theft Resource Center, about 10 million people are harmed by identity theft each year.
"This plan takes an extra step to ensure that Michigan residents are kept safe from the growing problem of identity theft and computer crimes," said State Representative Lee Gonzales (D-Flint Township), a sponsor of the plan. "Identity theft is a serious problem that costs people a lot of time and money to straighten out. Anyone who attempts to prey on an innocent victim, whether on the street or the Internet, should know that there will be serious consequences for their actions."