False Identification to Law Enforcement, 18 Pa.C.S. 4914

When the police are investigating a crime, and if they have reasonable suspicion to believe that a person was involved, the police can detain the person and require identification. If the person does not identify himself, he can be arrested. Regrettably, some people get scared and lie to the police about their name, address, and dates of birth.

This scenario happens relatively frequently in State College when an intoxicated Penn State student is stopped by the police to investigate Underage Drinking or Public Drunkenness. The student is scared, and people that are intoxicated often do not make the best decisions, so the student lies about their name and date of birth. Some officers suspect that the person is lying and give them multiple opportunities to tell the truth, but other officers are less accommodating. Ultimately, if the student persists with the lie, the student is charged with a misdemeanor offense of False Identification to Law Enforcement under 18 Pa.C.S. 4914. The student is generally not arrested on the spot but is instead cut loose.  The charge is filed later with the court and mailed to the student via summons. The charge is graded as a misdemeanor of the third degree and carries a maximum sentence of 1 year in jail and a $2,500.00 fine.

Criminal Record for Fake ID

Because the False Identification to Law Enforcement charge is a misdemeanor, Pennsylvania law requires that person to be fingerprinted and photographed.  When a person is printed, the Pennsylvania State Police and FBI created a record of the case, and that record can be found by background search companies, so the record could be provided to employers and landlords.

The Fake ID charge is also a little worse than other non-violent misdemeanor charges because it is considered a crimen falsi offense. Crimen falsi means a crime involving dishonesty, so this charge is grouped with forgery and theft.  Employers and landlords are more concerned with this type of conviction because they don’t trust someone that is dishonest.

Fake ID Charges and ARD

In many False Identification to Law Enforcement cases, the person may be able to obtain a dismissal and expungement of the charge by participating in the ARD program. Participation in ARD would require the person to pay ARD costs and fees, be subject to a period of supervision by the probation department, and probably complete some community service.  By doing those things, the person is permitted to file paperwork to have the charge dismissed and then go through the Pennsylvania expungement process to have the records of the incident destroyed.

If you have been charged with False Identification to Law Enforcement or other criminal offenses in the State College or surroundings areas, contact an experienced State College Fake ID attorney at JD Law for a free consultation. Email or leave a message at (814) 689-9139.