Unfortunate Names

Types of Identity Theft - Things You Should Know

2012-12-18T02:21:00.003-08:00

What is Identity Theft?

Identity theft has become one of the most common criminal offences in Canada. This kind of theft usually occurs when someone takes possession of personal information such as your name, address, social security number, credit cards and/or driver's license along with other data. The intent behind committing this crime is to take illegal advantage of your identity, and your assets. The goal is for the thief to avoid the repercussions of their dishonest actions through impersonation of the victim. In some cases identity thieves have even gone as far as to try and sell property and embezzle the money. The largest credit bureaus in Canada receive over 1,800 identity theft complaints a month from Canadian Citizens.

1. Financial / Credit Identity Theft

Credit identity theft occurs when someone uses your information to obtain loans, goods or services and doesn't pay the bills. Their actions often include opening a credit card account fraudulently and attaining government benefits, passing bad cheques or opening a new bank account. Getting loans in another person's name is another way that identity thieves are able to attain finances. Due to the accumulation of bills the victim's line of credit is often negatively affected.

2. Medical Identity Theft

Through the use of a name and other aspects of one's identity the thief obtains medical insurance in the victim's name or uses their current medical insurance policy to obtain medical care or prescription drugs. Using the stolen identification, the thief is able to obtain consent to have medical services, or goods provided. If you are a victim of medical theft, you can be denied health coverage or lose your current health coverage because of false information being put on your medical record. This type of identity theft is the most dangerous form due to the thief's ability to change existing medical records that could potentially be life threatening for the victim, and is unfortunately the hardest theft to track, stop and fix.

3. Criminal Identity Theft

This type of identity theft occurs when someone has personal information including a valid driver's license and other forms of ID. Identity culprits are then able to obtain other false credentials to show authenticity to the stolen identity. The ID thief then impersonates the victim when apprehended for any type of crime or illegal act. They use the victim's information so that the crime will not show up on their own record and instead on the victim's. In this situation warrants could be issued for your arrest, you could be detained and end up spending time in jail for a crime you didn't commit. Often this type of identity theft is discovered when the victim is pulled over and ticketed for speeding or a smaller road violation. Criminal ID theft is just as difficult as medical ID theft since it is difficult to explain, fix and stop.

4. Social Security Identity Theft

Your social security number may be the most valuable piece of personal information a thief can steal. With this one piece of identification, a dishonest person can obtain other personal information to validity the identity. In some cases when a social security number is stolen the thief uses it when hired onto a new job. Specifically, they use your name and identity as their own. The thief's employer reports wages and the victim is forced into paying income taxes on those earnings. Another repercussion to this form of theft is that the victim will lose life sustaining benefits.

5. Synthetic Identity Theft

Synthetic ID theft is a fairly new type of identity theft and in which the criminal attempts to convince people that they are another person who is either real or fictional. In this case a thief will take information from various victims and combine it to create a new identity. In this case all victims whose information has been collected and used in the new identity will negatively be affected, although some more than others. Synthetic identities can be completely fabricated in some cases but a common technique is to obtain a real SSN number. This type of theft is more difficult to catch because the perpetrators credit report is difficult to track and obtain.

6. Child Identity Theft

Child ID theft occurs when a social insurance number is obtained and used to impersonate a child. Young children are an easily accessible target for identity theft because they are completely unaware that their information is being used, and discovery of this theft is usually not until the child is older. For this reason child identity theft has become a growing concern that can be difficult to avoid. When children are young the last thing they are concerned about is checking their credit. Often the culprit is a close family member or family friend who has stolen such information. Because the victim typically knows the person who has taken their identity, legal action is often not pursued.

Protect Yourself Against ID Theft

As long as "trusted" facilitators and have access to private information, you are always at risk for identity theft. It only takes this valuable information to fall into the wrong hands once, for identity theft to ensue and cause an uproar of liabilities for the victim.

To protect your assets including your property, credit rating, insurance and finances from being taken from you by an identity thief, avoid giving out personal information as much as possible, shred all unwanted mail, and never carry your SSN card with you. As well, keep private information out of eye sight and monitor your credit regularly.

Movie Magic - The Gothic Depiction of Criminal Behavior

2012-12-17T02:20:00.000-08:00

The singular suggestion of serial behavior conjures images of "monsters" in human form. Movie magic is the clever sleight of hand that thrills our senses. Inventiveness of writers, directors and technicians compete to titillate our imagination. Talented artistic people develop creative works of fiction for the vast entertainment industry. Through the imaginative lens of techno-wizardry, films manifest a dream world of dramatic fictional invention. Great tales are told, imparting profound impact. We enter the movie theater or turn on the television with the intention of getting some vicarious experience. Along with that, we're hoping what we see and hear somehow approaches the truth. The same thing applies when we boot up the computer. Regardless of the medium, a vast world of electronic communication unfolds.

We're confronted by a sensory array of myth, magic and mystery. Our thinking accepts meshing between myth and material reality. An eerie kind of darkness pervades our feelings, permeates the genre we consume. Screens of computers and televisions skim the superficial reaches of human diversity and deviance. Supernatural illusions draw upon the sensory array of personal consumption. Darkness descends, the shadows move and the thoughts fall into a dreamland. In the crimson curtained realm of the modern theater, demonic personalities are given life, meaning and purpose. But, it's only real insofar as the movie reel is concerned. Yet, for many of us, we see, believe and fail to perceive the subtle trickery at work. The fictional magic of murder, mayhem and mystery becomes thrilling, enchanting and breathtaking. Evil captivates the thinking processes as reality slips away, replaced with another kind of realism.

Human nature is difficult to define. Real-life crime is often difficult to solve. But, movies figure everything out in less than two hours. At the same time, civilian experts replace real police heroes, solving complex crimes by theory in lieu of effective detective work. Evidence becomes unnecessary since the latest fad of profiling has all the answers to the who done it. The unexplained, the hidden and darkly dangerous conjure an artifice of illusion suggesting all puzzles have solutions. Facts fold within the fusing fabric of fiction. Stories of fictitious creation seem, appear and feel as if true. Yarns, legends and fairy-tales provoke us to feel instead of thinking critically. The brain's mirror, the mind, goes numb. Apparitions of illogical conclusions find contemporary credence. Instead of human beings who kill people out of their own selfish desires, they are transformed by press agents into "serial killers", "monsters" among us.

We're seduced by the fakery that sells symbolism over substance, myth and magic instead of factual evidence. Diversion distracts our emotions into the make believe world of amusement. The "gothic mode" of thought and action stimulate fears, taboos and any of a serial nature. The melodrama of such fascinations leak over into the real world of everyday life. Unfortunately, when this happens we replace serious analysis with fantasy, false conclusion and erroneous beliefs. In time, public policy becomes affected. As a result, misnomers of one nature or another enter political arena. In law enforcement we've become "mind hunters", "hunt monsters", or "get inside the criminal mind".

Can we seriously distinguish the difference between fact and fiction as an American public? That requires rethinking our thinking. Conventional "wisdom", on the other hand, seems to suggest we shouldn't be confused by facts. Some would say it's doubtful we can separate the truth from deception. Too many experts offer alleged talents, providing a maze of explanations. In the mean time, police work suffers the interference of impressions left by movie magic. The indignity of misguided political correctness, due to the latest fad of fiction, forces itself on real-life police investigations. People without any practical experience or knowledge in law enforcement, are quick to get involved. They offer nebulous opinions, spurious interpretations and specious excuse for criminal behavior. Politicians quote from movies instead of the lessons of history. At the same time, good story tellers do what they're supposed to do. Entertain us, not educate us. Give us leisure time outlets, not teach us about law enforcement processes. The news media, motion picture productions and T-V have all contributed to the glamorization of criminal behavior. Given time, and enough reporting, the villain can become the victim. Our criminal nature becomes type cast as a virus in an emotional production that spreads through the populace like the common cold.

Certain film genres fabricate the erroneous articulation of criminal behavior. Thriller narratives strive to capitalize on our gullible notions of good and evil. They can paint a gothic portrait of human nature without the defining colors of factual evidence. In depth forensic analyses are not needed. Dark images of vampire-like characters lurk across the silver screen. Composites of real-life criminals can be immortalized in the telling of one lurid tale after another. At the same time, we often don't heed the warnings of caution. The one that tells us the story was inspired by true life events, but is really false. Or, the statement that plainly says the tale is a work of fiction. Literary license challenges our belief systems. So, we think what we watch is reality. That's what creative story telling is all about.

Unfortunately, some of us live by the concept that seeing is believing. Questioning what we experience by the senses, or analyzing with critical insight, often escapes the notice of cerebral processes. Urban legends spread the mythology of untruths. Overall, the public enjoys a good scary movie. The success of horror films goes without question. Many people find fascination in the viewing of violence, debauchery and murder. Our mental mayhem is tantalized by the tingling sensation of "blood and guts" depictions. Very easily, we make the leap from fact to fiction upon leaving the theater, or turning off the television set. From soap operas and sitcoms, to weekly dramatic series, we relish in the chronicle of escapism. Common sense, logic and reason seem turn off when the tube is turned on. Through various media, we experience a multitude of untruths. We forget movies are about marketing, ratings and making money. As such, movie magic transforms fictional depictions of aberrant criminal behavior into a fantasy of realism. Many of us make easy assumptions about the nature of human criminality. Such notions transform and cross over into our everyday lives. This is especially true when it comes to serial killers and mass murderers. Our media culture, from the internet to television, entertains us with bizarre tales of the human imagination.

Don't Mess With a Professional - Watch Your Favorite Crime Shows on Satellite TV

2012-12-16T02:19:00.000-08:00

There is an intense fascination with crime shows in the United States. Satellite television channels are overrun with shows like "CSI" and "Law and Order" with their respective spinoffs and subdivisions. The interest is understandable, especially as more and more of the legal process is revealed through these programs. While fictional, many of the techniques and jargon employed in shows like "CSI" are legitimate, now broadcasting to the world, including its criminals, what not to do if you wish to remain a free and law breaking citizen. Now "CSI" does not reveal all but an acronym such as GSR was not a thing of common knowledge before the explosion of these crime shows. This raises the question of where a show should draw the line in pursuing the appearance of authenticity and accuracy before it potentially compromises the work of real people?

Beyond the issue of actual procedure being used and explained in the show, there is the topic of how graphic a show should be in its depiction of death. Murder, death, and brutality are essential themes to any crime show, but taste and nausea must be taken into account before a director decides its OK to show a faux mangled body in high definition. Subtlety seems to have been replaced in favor of shock value as the camera follows the path of a bullet through the skull and into the brain matter of a victim. Perhaps this is done in an effort to satisfy the curiosity of viewers as to what the path of a bullet to the brain would look like, but in the end it is all fiction anyways. These shows toe the line between fiction and reality, incorporating enough truth to appear legitimate though retaining sufficient fiction to protect the audience from actually seeing anything too graphic.

The real intrigue behind these shows may be the opportunity they present for the viewer to play detective. Trying to weigh all of the clues and reach the conclusion before anyone else offers a fine challenge to a curious mind. People's satellite televisions act as portals, allowing them to immerse themselves in the racier, sexier life of a detective in a more often than not clear cut world of good and bad, right and wrong. The fictitious nature of the show protects the viewer from having to realize or understand the serious brutality of the suggested crime were it actually to be experienced in real life, instead they lose themselves in the story and the task of trying to decipher the conclusion before anyone else. The widespread interest in crime dramas is good for the imagination, but people must be careful not to glorify crime too much. The acts that much of the programs are based on are much more than an intricate puzzle asking to be solved, and people must bear in mind that if they actually saw these acts in HD, there would be quite a bit more on their mind than trying to find GSR.

Criminal Or Penal Laws

2012-12-11T07:44:00.002-08:00

Criminal or Penal law covers the rules and decrees written by the congressmen and legislators of the state with regards to felonies that causes damage to the ordinary citizens. According to the constitution, the defendant has a right to a speedy trial. The definition of the word "speedy," however, and the advantages of insisting a speedy trial, shows a discrepancy from state to state. Within some states, nearly every defendant, in order to gain ample time to set up their defenses, have to relinquish their right to a speedy trial.

If a defendant claims a speedy trial, he can never allege later that he lacked the time to arrange for his defense. On the other hand, if a speedy trial was demanded by a defendant and the prosecutor isn't ready to go on with the trial, the allegations against the defendant may be dropped. The difference between a bench trial and a jury trial is that a jury trial is when the judge settles the law even as the jury settles the facts. Whereas, a bench trial is when the judge settles both the facts and the law. Both the defendant as well as the prosecutor can request a jury trial even if prosecutors favor bench trials.

When a case is arranged for jury trial, the parties go through the selection of the jury. During which, a team of jurors is interviewed by the lawyers, by the judge, or both, in what is termed as "voir dire," literally "to speak the truth." The point of this hearing is to decide whether these jurors will be just and unbiased, whether they will come to a decision regarding the case on the basis of the evidence introduced in court. Both prosecutors and defendants can confront the jurors if they suspect they are unfair in opposition to their side. The judge will decide if there is a reasonable ground to remove a specific juror from hearing a case. Both defendants and prosecutor can also remove a limited number of jurors without any grounds or clarification.

At the onset of the trial, the jury is instructed that the defendant is given the presumption of innocence until he is proven guilty. So jurors should not ditch this presumption and think that the defendant is guilty before each and every evidence regarding the case is heard.

Criminal law is usually put into effect by the government. The state, through the District Attorney, begins the court proceedings.

Authentic Crime and Legal Fiction

2012-12-06T07:45:00.000-08:00

Writing about a highly technical topic, like crime or law, can be intimidating. In the world of criminal law, there are innumerable rules, practices and procedures. Criminal lawyers speak their own language. To write a good crime or legal story, a writer needs to have credibility.

Credibility comes from working within the rules of criminal law and speaking the criminal law language. But you don't have to be a cop or lawyer to write about crime or criminal law with authenticity. Here are some tips to get started:

1. Brainstorm: As in any genre, a good story with interesting characters and plot twists must be the starting point. Physically write out brainstorming ideas without regard to order, quality or completeness. Just start writing, and let the ideas flow.

2. Get Inspired: Inspiration often comes from outside sources, often unexpectedly. Read great books, and watch great movies, especially crime and legal drama. Read about crime in the news. Follow interesting trials. Watch true crime stories on television and read true crime books. You never know when some small tidbit will spark a story in you.

3. Outline: Everyone has their own methods of and opinions about outlining. Whether organized by chapter, act, scene, character or plot point, outlining is a critical tool to organize a story. The more complex the story, the more important an outline can be. Outlining can be especially important in a crime novel or legal drama because your story needs to fit within the rules of the criminal law world.

For example, if you want to have a piece of exculpatory evidence discovered at the end of act two, you will have to know what stage of the legal proceedings the case is in to help determine how the evidence could realistically come to light.

4. Educate Yourself: Read up about real criminal law on the internet and in books. Look for information specifically targeted to the non-lawyer. Watch real trials when they are televised. Watch true crime shows. Although they often cut out a lot of detail, especially the procedural stuff, they usually get things right. Read news stories and true crime books. The same warning goes for these sources: they are usually accurate but often leave out details you might want to know.

Do not rely on talking head lawyer commentators on television. They usually speak off the tops of their heads and often get things wrong. They also often have an agenda that they are pushing and speak of things from that point-of-view. Finally, do not rely on other criminal law fiction. Crime fiction in television, movies and books are often completely, eye-rollingly off the mark.

5. Consult an Expert: When in doubt, ask a question. As you brainstorm, outline and draft, keep notes of questions that come up. Consulting an expert, usually a criminal lawyer, can be costly, so try to know what you want guidance on before you contact someone. Also, be sure to speak to someone who is able to explain things simply and clearly, and who is willing to admit when they do not know something.

How To Help Your Criminal Lawyer Make A Sound Defense

2012-12-01T07:46:00.000-08:00

Being charged in court with a criminal offense can indeed be a scary experience. The court proceeding can be too stressful and emotionally laden, aside from the fact that it would take too much of your precious time, effort, and money. Fortunately, the legal system recognizes the principle that any person accused of a crime is not guilty unless otherwise proven beyond reasonable doubt. So whether you are accused of kidnapping, robbery, human trafficking, money laundering, serious fraud and assaults, murder (manslaughter), organized crime, corruption, blackmail, or bribery; it simply is no reason to lose hope. In any legal system, the accused is given the opportunity to defend himself and prove his innocence. So the best step to get yourself out of trouble with the law is to make use of the law's legal provision for your defense. And the best way to do this is by hiring a criminal lawyer.

Now, how can a criminal lawyer help you in resolving your case at hand? Criminal lawyers have the knowledge and necessary training in court proceedings regarding criminal cases and are therefore in the best position to handle your case. They know what to expect while representing you in court and, in accordance with that knowledge, can formulate a strategic method for your defense. Apart from being knowledgeable about court proceedings, they also have an extensive knowledge of the laws that applies to any particular criminal case and will take advantage of that knowledge to argue your case. They have the capacity to exhaust all available legal remedies for your benefit.

You should put in mind, however, that your defense in any criminal case proceeding is not the work of your lawyer alone. He will need your cooperation, too, in order to formulate a good strategy and argument in winning the legal battle for you. So how can you possibly help your lawyer do just that? The best way to do this is to let your criminal defense lawyer know all the facts of your case at hand. Tell him everything you know about the case that is being charged against you in court. All circumstances attendant to the case is a matter of vital importance. It would be futile for you to let your lawyer know only the things or circumstance that you want him to know while keeping from him some information for one reason or another. As it is, your lawyer can only formulate a sound strategy for your defense or proceed to avail of the best legal remedy on your behalf if you have let him have complete knowledge of all the circumstances that led to the charge against you. So, it is very important for you to trust your lawyer with all the information that he needs, after all, he has the necessary expertise regarding the law that applies to your case and how that law can be used for your best benefit.