Identity Fraud: Georgia's Fastest Growing Crime

According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and other news reports, reported cases of identity fraud and theft are sky-rocketing in the State of Georgia, and elsewhere.  For instance, according to reports, the number of reported identity fraud cases doubled in Fulton and Cobb Counties during the past year alone.

As a former federal prosecutor, (currently, I am an Augusta, GA criminal defense lawyer with my sons), I tried to make identity fraud a prosecutorial priority. Also, although I was unable to get my bosses to follow though, as a former AUSA, I had also advocated the establishment of an identity theft  task force.  Fortunately, in federal court, penalties are serious enough to "get the attention" of identity thieves. However, on the state level, identity thieves often receive probationary sentences, at least for their first offenses.

Another problem with combating identity theft and fraud also exists in the State of Georgia. It involves law enforcement budget problems. I'll bet you didn't know that, just a couple of years ago, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, (GBI), was forced to eliminate its identity fraud unit, following state budgetary cutbacks.

As a result, sadly, just when the identity fraud rate is escalating across this state, Georgia law enforcement has been rendered less capable of dealing with it.  What do you think should be done?