Identity Thief Gets 12 Years In Prison

And here's the video that explains the groundhog.
• My VERY Strange Day

[@crinklecut3790]

None of these tragic circumstances would have occurred without the help of the police and the court. They victimized him too.

[@drawingmomentum]

💯

[@SmallJack86]

Incompetence runs rampant in our government.

[@luck484]

True, and that hurts a lot. A person really, really can't trust the institutions that are funded and protected by the US government to protect the person. An imperfect system.

[@vitalivour666]

100%!

[@brentfarvors192]

That was the whole point behind the sentence. This guy made a complete mockery of the system. His crimes exposed them for the corrupt DB's they really are...Through their pure ignorance, they literally tortured an innocent man, because he wouldn't admit to being guilty. Modern day Salem witch trials...

[@odesangel]

A 12 year sentence is nowhere near enough time for this guy.

[@niyablake]

missing a 0

[@arinerm1331]

@@niyablake And missing the perpetrator's accomplices, namely the police and the court.

[@dooshnukem32]

Yeah this isn't justice, this is barely pittance.

[@tetsuclaw]

guy impersonated someone for almost 25 years. I would think a 25 year sentence would have been poetic. Hopefully the victim gets a good settlement to ensure he never ends back up on the streets for the rest of his life.

[@Hero_Puddle]

People on the internet are weird when it comes to prison time. Don't get me wrong I have no sympathy for the perpetrator a but people are acting like 12 years off your life is a pittance. If you are actually compassionate for the victims and the betterment of society, rather than wanting to feel gratification from a crime you never had to suffer from, then more prison time has diminishing returns. We don't need to spend ludicrous amounts of taxpayer money to add another 10/20/30 years when 99.999% of perpetrators woudn't trade an entire decade of their life for the stunt and are banking on not getting caught.

[@spaceracer23]

The original DA should also get 12 years and his entire pension should go to the victim.

[@dalesplitstone6276]

Actually, everything the thief paid into Social Security should go towards the victim's SS fund.

[@jesspeinado480]

The police, judge, hospital workers as well.

[@fetchstixRHD]

If anything, they're more responsible than the identity thief...

[@dannylgriffin]

Police and DA. No one actually investigated, then ruined a man's life.

[@jaydunbar7538]

@@dalesplitstone6276 thats not how SS works, there is no "fund" for anyone, its a ponzi scheme

[@braddl9442]

Is the man going to sue the Police, the Bank, and the Hospital that forced drugs on him. I mean the guy must have a case against the state as well right?

[@erroneus00]

I think he should if he can show they failed in their due diligence. However, banks don't generally require DNA testing to establish identity. Police should and a judge when faced with two parties claiming the same ID should.

[@ianbattles7290]

At least the hospital staff isn't protected by qualified immunity...

[@jasonbourne1596]

​@@erroneus00You have to wonder though, what's the point of a signature when just any will do. The bank could have compared signatures and figured out what was what.

[@matthewlong9369]

I would also sue his first lawyer. Finding the father should have been step one and would theoretically have prevented this whole thing assuming he was allowed to do so. If not, I would think that that would be a fairly easy appeal.

[@SanchoSanto]

​@jasonbourne1596 signatures are only comparable to what is already on file. The thief already has a signature on file so the victims signature won't match what is already on file.

[@kennethwiggins4396]

The victim needs to file suit against the identity thief and the police for not verifying the proper identity of both parties!

[@buyerbware25]

1980s technology would have easily proven who the impostor was. There is no excuse for the mess ever happening.

[@iKevin33]

"Its not our job to investigate anything." -every single police department in the country, which is why crimes like murder have a conviction rate in the low 40s%. Can't prove anything beyond a reasonable doubt when you don't even bother investigating in the first place.

[@t1czer]

Don't forget about forcefull medication of the victim part.

[@brentfarvors192]

He did/is...And, the state will/did settle for millions...

[@jasonbrannen7598]

no reason to sue the identity thief...he doesn't have anything you can take...everything he has already was stolen from the victim.

[@fisheyed681]

The people who didn't investigate, chose not to call his boss, locked him up and forced him into a mental hospital did more damage than the identity thief. And the doctors who heard him making sense.

[@cross6588]

They worked at the same job in 1988 where he stole his wallet to get his information and I doubt after all these years that would helpful. The DNA test would have been the most helpful

[@fisheyed681]

If the boss says I hired Tim and Bob, and this guy is saying I am Tim, Bob stole my name, that's enough to not put him in a mental ward, cause now there's 2 people saying it. Maybe the boss can even look at a picture and say This was TIm, that was Bob. The crux is Bob says I am innocnet, because of ABC, and instead of looking at ABC they took his freedom away until he pled guilty or not contest. Was his mental health going to improve he plet no contest?

[@cross6588]

@ he hired them in 1988 at a hotdog stand. He assumed id in 1990 and the warnings signs didn’t appear to around 2015. He didn’t walk into the bank into 2019 and got arrested. Do you really think the boss remembers them like that. That is probably why the police didn’t bother going down that rabbit hole.

[@wayneegli8379]

​@@cross6588Police are lazy. Don't justify it.

[@cross6588]

@ the police are lazy but some of yall are slow. He worked at a hotdog stand 30 years ago. Do you really think the owner remembers what he looks like? They should have got the DNA but asking a hotdog stand owner to remember what two employees looked like 30 years ago is hilarious.

[@cplmpcocptcl6306]

About time identity theft is taken seriously. I hope he can sue the idiotic judge and police that locked him up.

[@Nick-b7b9s]

Rusty Shackelford would be proud

[@ianbattles7290]

Another terrifying reminder of how easily an innocent person can end up in jail through no fault of their own.

[@TheRealScooterGuy]

Sounds great, but judges have absolute immunity for decisions they make on the bench. The only way to overcome it would be to prove the judge was part of some criminal conspiracy that was related to the decision.

[@RozzWilliamsScholarsSociety]

Judges are exempt. That should change as well.

[@glee21012]

Can't sue the judge, can't sue the cops either, unless the judge says it's ok.

[@19651]

Remember guys, he's getting his medicine forced

[@Erik-iu9zt]

That's the worst part of all this, worse than the 2 years in prison.

[@franksnowboarder]

Identity thieves need longer sentences.

[@appliedengineering4001]

Especially when they cause this kind of damage. My God, this is a hell of a lot worse then just putting a ding in someones credit score.

[@stillraven9415]

99.99% of the people that say they would never plea guilty for something they never did have never been accused of a crime they never did.

[@Jimmydafreak]

You apparently have no clue how the "justice" system works in the US in 2025. You get arrested and sit in jail for 6 months. Then they'll pull you out of jail and ask you if you are ready to plea bargain. If you plead guilty, you probably go home. If you want to continue your innocence claim, they'll throw you back in jail for 6 more months and the cycle repeats until you finally plead guilty to a crime you didn't commit. I have seen people sitting in the county jail for 4 years still maintaining their innocence and still awaiting a trial. And the most egregious part of this heinous tactic is they used it most aggressively against those whom they have the least amount of evidence against (the state's weakest cases), because they know that is their best chance of getting a conviction. That is precisely what was done in this case. No telling how long this man would have had to rot in jail had he not plead "no contest." If justice were served in this case - and it never will be - the bank manager, the arrest police officer(s), the prosecutor, and the judge should go to prison for the rest of their lives, so they can never do this to another human being ever again. The judge should also be forced medicated.

[@ianbattles7290]

It's terrifying to see how easily the victim of a crime can end up in prison because the cops are lazy and/or incompetent.

[@iKevin33]

"Good enough for government work" in action.

[@darkworlddenizen]

FTP

[@daleallen7634]

​@@iKevin33: Oh, and,of course, the cops aren't actually required to actually investigate anything, or to truthfully report the results of any investigation that they have done!

[@-Devy-]

@@iKevin33 Love how morons say shit like this as if the entire private sector is some grand, shining beacon of flawless competency.

[@flipper184]

Keeping the conviction rate up. The folks at the bottom are easy meat for scammers. And Prosecutors.

[@cdub6530]

The victim in this case should also be allowed to keep the Social Security credits that the identity thief built up in his name.

[@willmcgo8288]

I like this. Really there is no reason he shouldn't be able to keep any credits, they are attached to the SSN assigned to him.

[@RicCross]

Wonder how many years this went on? Not sure that having SS credits victim did not earn is the correct call. Having the SSA correct the records for these two individuals is probably going to be a headache, but seems to me to be the right call. Seems to me the victim deserves to win a lawsuit against the tyrants that incarcerated him. The perpetrator will serve his time, perhaps released early, possibly even face civil trial…

[@daleallen7634]

​@@RicCross: I believe that a civil trial would most likely be pointless. After all, coming out of incarceration after 12 years, how much money is he gonna have, or be able to put together to pay the victim with?

[@RicCross]

@@daleallen7634 You maybe right, lawyers are awfully expensive. We have no idea how old the perpetrator is, only that he made more than 100k working for a hospital. His career on hold for 6 to 12 years, who knows maybe statute of limitations prevents such a suit.

[@daleallen7634]

@@cdub6530 : I absolutely agree, the victim should be able to keep every last bit of the tax credits paid into HIS accounts for every year that he was impersonated. Unfortunately, the impersonator is probably gonna file paperwork for a correction to the tax records! 🙁

[@frankdeboer1347]

I agree this guy deserves the jail term, but the judge needs a mental health check and should be placed under mandatory psychiatric care for sending the victim to a hospital.

[@ginatate3098]

12 yrs isn't enough for the identity criminal theft. I hope the victim gets justice against the officials who were soooooo incompetent. Never mind fingerprints,,, and dental records Or any other verifications

[@ulrichkalber9039]

when he has a drivers licence in a false name and there are not already prints of the real owner of the identity, guess to whom the FP are attributed. same with dental the only way here was to check the genetic relation with his father.

[@mrcryptozoic817]

Or ask his father. Incompetent or lazy police work. Too bad they can't be sued. In any other profession, they could be but not police. edit: Never put your Social Security card anywhere where it's accessible and especially NOT IN YOUR WALLET.

[@mrcryptozoic817]

@@ulrichkalber9039 Even in the days before DNA analysis, his father has family pictures and dentist names. Bingo. Very easy and hard to ignore.

[@unbreakable7633]

Evidence? Who needs evidence? We live in a police state.

[@digitalcurrents]

@@mrcryptozoic817 Remember that the victim was estranged from his father, the police had to hunt him down for the DNA test. The victim had no ties to the community or to his own family. No fingerprints and no dental records from years of being homeless.

[@michaelnaretto3409]

Stealing a car might have gotten him 3 years in a California prison. Now, he got 12 years because he didn't want to do three years. Brilliant. Well done.....

[@daleallen7634]

@michaelnaretto3409: I thought that the car was stolen in Oregon?

[@michaelnaretto3409]

@daleallen7634 I thought Steve said the car was stolen in California but the man was arrested in Oregon. I'll have to watch this again to make sure..

[@Un.CivilEngineer]

So will the judge be sent to a mental institution for 400 days? I think he should.

[@willmcgo8288]

All the incompetent fools that allowed this to get so far off the rails should have a forced 400 day vacation in a prison. DA, the victims first lawyer, the judge, and the investigators who didn't properly investigate. This is what happens when people in places of authority don't exercise due diligence, and when there is no accountability for making this type of error that could so easily been resolved much earlier. Justice delayed is justice denied.

[@rinardman]

The ID thief got a job at a hospital in Iowa. Just the type of honest, trustworthy person you want working at a place that takes care of your health. 🙄

[@danburch9989]

If the ID thief had a medical problem (prostate cancere), the victim could eventually be misdiagnosed with that medical conditiion he never had.

[@vitalivour666]

So the state had nearly two years with the victim in custody and NOBODY thought until he was released to do a simple DNA test!?

[@aubreyleonae4108]

they are smart like that, they're the professionals.

[@digitalcurrents]

I'm actually surprised that some cop somewhere went that extra mile to hunt down the father on the birth certificate and do a DNA comparison. Would you believe a well-respected person in the community who has friends and coworkers who have known them for years or do you believe a homeless man who is estranged from his family and who has no long-term friends or community ties and who is probably a little deranged from years of homelessness?

[@HappilyHomicidalHooligan]

DNA only works IF they have a sample to compare against...if the person has no living Family (or is Adopted), then you take his DNA and run the Profile, but what do you compare it to to determine who they are? Granted in this particular case, the Victim did have Living Family so a DNA test should have been done YEARS ago...

[@jasonbrannen7598]

@@digitalcurrents go to your local Social Security office and ask for a replacement card. They will ask you several detailed questions about your parents. Then ask yourself whether even your best friends would have any idea where your father was born, etc. Outside of a sibling, it would be really tough to know this info...someone who was nothing more than a coworker would have no chance. The cops just made an assumption and didn't do what they're supposed to do.

[@vitalivour666]

@HappilyHomicidalHooligan the father on the birth certificate dude. Yowsa

[@boduke9428]

Wow. Dude rotted for 2 years locked up when a simple investigation could have cleared it up in a few days Max. I swear law enforcement doesn't even try. They make up their mind on what's true and real and try proving that rather than trying to find the truth.

[@luck484]

Yup, it seems like the professionals in the arena have been incentivized to ignore the people who have come to the absolute last person who could help them. Funny how that works. Doing a good job is hard and without rewards, so why bother. Measure that efficiency.

[@UncleSam-bu9gz]

Forcably medicated! Insane.

[@mikelarry2602]

That shouldn't be allowed.

[@billyjoejimbob75]

By people who were told a story and just believed it.

[@JohnMcClain-s5w]

Watch "One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest"

[@rapid13]

While in a mental institution because a judge ruled he was mentally incompetent. You don’t just leave someone who needs help without help because it offends your sensibilities.

[@UncleSam-bu9gz]

@JohnMcClain-s5w I saw it when it came out. One reason I won't get on the "bus".

[@lockedonlaw]

If you steal my identity, you better hope the justice system gets to you first.

[@reynoldsmathey]

LOL, 'justice system'

[@grimreaper4801]

​@@reynoldsmatheyyea court is gaslighting by calling themselves justice system. Law isn't what define justice.

[@ericsmith8373]

"I'm not arresting you anymore!"

[@macpat6458]

@@reynoldsmathey "just us system"

[@luck484]

I am not saying I disagree with your statment or intent, although I am wondering if and how you would achieve your theoretical objective without committing a crime.

[@firefly4f4]

This really begs the question of why the dna test wasn't carried out in the first place.

[@92Looneytune]

Also, what identity did they give the guy? If they kept insisting he wasn't using his real name, what name did they insist he should use instead?

[@jasonbrannen7598]

They honestly didn't even need the DNA test.....a conventional investigation would have uncovered the truth.

[@mch2359]

Please name the Bank, the cops who arrested him, the Judge who jailed him, and the Doctors at the mental hospital. These people all need to be publicly thanked for their kind and outstanding actions. They are what makes society shine and should never be forgotten.

[@Loruca]

Steve rarely names the culprits, but a quick google gave me some of the info, altho the particular article I read only named the perp.

[@roy19491]

you speak sarcasm very fluently.......

[@andrewgjennings]

I don't blame the doctor/hospital. We don't know the meds he was prescribed, and it's possible the victim really needed them (eg, antianxiety/antidepressant). The victim proclaimed an identity that the cops and court claimed otherwise, and so, the doctors had to determine who told the truth. After all, how often do you hear of doctors forensically proving or disproving a patient's assertion? Why would a doctor immediately distrust what the police AND court say? I also don't blame the bank: the ID thief changed/created the security questions and answers, you can't blame the bank for that. I DO fully blame the police who could have done a simple DNA test, and I suspect the court could have done the same. I got lost in the story somewhere, but it's also possible his own lawyer could have done the same as well. This identity theft case is insidious; without knowing more about what happened, I wouldn't blame anyone just yet, other than the police.

[@daleallen7634]

​@@andrewgjennings: And, of course, the identity thief?!?!

[@mch2359]

@@andrewgjennings Bureaucratic Indifference. The Police, the public defender and the Judge all said this guy,(the victim) was not worthy of any respect. Their attitude was based on the fact that he gave the wrong answer to the bank’s security question. The Doctors did not care about doing any harm, as they felt absolved of any responsibility by the Court and bureaucratic indifference. The Doctors had this guy strapped to a table and injected him with drugs until he would admit 2 + 2 = 5. Same as if he did not know his name. The drugs were something they could bill the county for. Why not? Right? And the beat goes on! The chain of Bureaucratic Indifference was only broken by the detective who actually cared about the truth.

[@corymorrison4488]

“Oh no if it isn’t the consequences of my own actions, my life is over” good

[@JKlein713]

Someone I know, who is a bit of a mess, had her purse stolen in Las Vegas. She was in the process of moving from Ohio to Nevada and had her 3 kids birth certificates in her purse. At the time, all the kids were minors. When the oldest turned 18, she found out that someone was using her identity, and she had damn near perfect credit! She took advantage of it. When she was 20 she bought a house at auction, did some work, and flipped it. She did that 3 times before the person who was using her identity caught on and abandoned the identity.

[@ulrichkalber9039]

not always stolen ids are used for fraud or avoiding criminal responsibility. the other reasons that come to mind are: - being an illegal immigrant -being a spy.

[@edwinmartin9120]

Sometimes in Vegas you hit the jackpot without even playing😁🤑🤯

[@jasonbrannen7598]

@@ulrichkalber9039 using someone's identity because you're undocumented or a spy are textbook examples of doing so to avoid criminal responsibility.

[@francisseidel8014]

The people (prosecutors, police, judge, ...) who abused the victim need to be held liable and face charges under 18 USC 242. Ten years in prison for the abuse they put the victim through will make others think twice about searching for the truth, not making unfounded accusations.

[@Captain_Pudding]

I like how people who knew him for years but only found out his real name after his arrest called him "dependable" in their letters.

[@thehellyousay]

the letters are BS

[@solandri69]

@@thehellyousay The letters are from his fellow identity thieves, using the stolen identities of other people.

[@kenthesparky178]

Should have been 112 years.

[@geoffreyganoe5246]

should be 1 year per day the victim was in custody.

[@Eidolon1andOnly]

Should be sentenced one decade for every day the victim was incarcerated, especially considering the victim was forcibly medicated.

[@IaIaCthulhuFtagn]

Not only does he need to sue for false imprisonment, but now he's got to fight his creditors to get the other guys reporting off his credit line.

[@Omego2K]

Here's something to think about. The victim offered the police an easy way to check whether he was telling the truth. He offered to call his former employer. The police would not do it. I don't think the goal of the police was the truth or punishing a guilty person. I think their goal was to punish the victim whether or not he is a criminal. I'm not saying that they went after him because they thought he was innocent and wanted to hurt an innocent person. I'm saying that they wanted to hurt somebody and they didn't care whether the person was guilty of a crime or not.

[@kevinrtres]

Exactly - same as in the case of wrongly IDentified woman that got taken off a boat in Florida. The cops knew it wasn't her but they jailed her anyway.

[@cross6588]

Yeah but according to the article they both worked at the hotdog stand and that’s how he got his information so that might not work.

[@Omego2K]

@@cross6588 the boss will likely be able to identify him. If he does then it's not absolute proof, but certainly evidence that should cause a hold on the arrest without further investigation

[@cross6588]

@ he worked back in 1988 at a hotdog stand and that’s where he stole the victims wallet to get his information. There are studies of eye witness testimony being unreliable and with that amount of time would the boss really help?

[@Omego2K]

@@cross6588 there is a strong and likely possibility I think the boss would help to instill strong doubt to further more investigation.

[@primoroy]

When somebody is arrested, aren't FINGERPRINTS mandatory? The ID thief and the victim don't have identical fingerprints or DNA! Why did the police NOT catch the fingerprint missmatch? The thief had a prior arrest, prints should be in the FBI national database!

[@alli3219]

If for once the data collection would work in YOUR favour, they won't do it. But if they found stuff to pin on my anyone, guess how quickly the test kits come out 😖

[@ElGatoLoco698]

And therein lies the problem. I met a lot of people in jail for petty crimes. They all pleaded no contest just to get out of jail. I overheard one of them talking to his attorney. He had been in jail for two weeks. His attorney told him would be released later that day if he pleaded no contest. He then told his attorney that he was innocent and that he had no intention of pleading no contest. His attorney went and talked with the prosecutor and the prosecutor told him he would have to stay in jail if he wanted to fight the charge. So his only choices were to be released by not contesting the charge, or staying in jail while the case went through bureaucratic hell. What would you do? And by the way, if you plead no contest you can't later sue for unlawful arrest.

[@danburch9989]

Nor can you apperal unless you can prove corruption on the part of your attorney or prosecutor or judge. Good luck on getting one or more of those three to admit their criminal act.

[@kevinrtres]

@@danburch9989 Thank God that one person basically gave up his life for exactly this cause - to show the corruption among the judges in the system - there's a video on utb somewhere - I just forgot the name of the guy - a falsely accused black guy who studied law in prison and carefully collected information on the system and specifically the judge whilst doing so. Got it - Isaac Wright Jr, Jarret Adams and Derrick Hamilton are all three examples of guys who did exactly that.

[@TheTwoBeauties]

The poor guy can’t sue the judge or officials that put him in prison and forced medication on him because they’re all above the law and have qualified immunity.

[@alli3219]

Arseolute immunity in case of the legal person ...

[@DavidBenner-cy4zl]

Twelve years? Thirty to fifty years!

[@Eidolon1andOnly]

Life imprisonment at the very least.

[@hayuseen6683]

You want to pay for the room and board that long?

[@DavidBenner-cy4zl]

@hayuseen6683 USAID has a program they can pay out of or tax money.

[@alastairbrand4998]

Why do I get an uneasy feeling about this. When he goes to sue the authorities for wrongful imprisonment/hospitalisation, they will come back and say, "But hey you agreed to a No Contest Plea!". So unless he can get them on obtaining that plea through "torture" (forced treatment with psychotropic medicines) they will - as always seems to be the case- get away with nothing more than a few embarrassing headlines.

[@kevinrtres]

...and even if by some miracle he succeeds in winning a case with compensation - they still use tax-payers money and so still escape punishment and accountability....

[@alastairbrand4998]

@kevinrtres It also shocks me that the USA still clings to qualified immunity for their police, so incompetence or outright illegality goes unpunished.

[@heroesandzeros7802]

The ultimate coercion, plead guilty or stay in a mental hospital. That should make for a good Federal 1983 lawsuit. The perp must not have been a cop or he would never have been convicted.

[@Raven9768]

The victim should sue everyone possible for false imprisonment, and pumping him full of drugs.

[@pictsidhe6471]

Will the victim get to keep the Social security benefits the thief accrued for him?

[@MrTheDif]

Probably.

[@kevinrtres]

...and the debts?

[@gorjlg]

Its a good thing his dad was actually his dad.

[@richardhole8429]

Yes, and if he happened to be the perp's dad...

[@ptkenterprise70]

IMO. He should have gotten more and the victem should have gotten millions from lawsuits by suing the MEFFERS that incarcerated and MEDICATED him

[@TheLuceon]

I hope he can get a lawsuit against the state going. They clearly failed in their duty and robbed the victim of his rights and liberty.

[@exceedinglycurioable]

The judge that ordered him drugged needs to be punished

[@digitalcurrents]

The victim was probably acting deranged from years of being homeless. He certainly wasn't helping himself on credibility.

[@andrewgjennings]

I'm just playing devil's advocate here, but a judge can't order anyone to be drugged - he can only order someone to be evaluated. The doctor who evaluated is the only one who can order/prescribe drugs. And in this case, we don't know what medications he was ordered to take; it could be for something he really needed, like an anti-anxiety or anti-depressant. It could also be the case that the doctor ordered anti-psychotics to counter the "schizophrenic behavior" of assuming an identity that the doctors were told (by police and court) that he was not. In other words, the doctor could have made the correct diagnosis and prescription no matter how the victim presented. It is possible the doctor/hospital are not culpable, because how often do you hear of a doctor attempting to forensically prove or disprove a patient's assertion of an identity?

[@neftron]

The police need to be held accountable for failing to do their basic due diligence. They stopped investigating because they refused to check if they maybe wrong. The victim needs to not just sue the department but the investigators personally

[@ncdogg425]

This reminds me of that Spider-Man meme when they're pointing at each other

[@ianbattles7290]

I hope this prosecutor feels like an idiot for convicting an innocent person.

[@edwinmartin9120]

a conviction is a conviction when you want a 100% conviction rate😐😑😬🤡💩

[@TheMelnTeam]

Some prosecutors will fight to keep proven innocent people (via new evidence) in prison. They do not feel like idiots. They are criminal actors in a system that has long looked the other way regarding their particular crimes.

[@dirtfarmer7070]

He doesn't...

[@willymack5196]

I would think at the very least the victim would be able to sue the mental hospital for misdiagnosing him and forcing him on unnecessary medication. People sue doctors all the time when doctors misdiagnose and do things that harm people and in this case the hospital cannot in any way claim that they did not harm the guy. I mean at the very least the guy is old a ton of money for what he went through from both the legal system and the mental health system.

[@RickOSidhe]

YMMV - it depends on state laws. In NC, as an example, the bar is set very high to even be able to file. The medical industry got the state legislature to pass a law that requires that any medical malpractice claim has to be evaluated by a medical professional before you can begin litigation. The cost is on you and is $5K+ depending on the complexity of the situation. If their opinion doesn't come down in your favor, you can't file the complaint. It is *very* difficult to get a medical professional to go on the record against their colleagues unless the malpractice is obvious and/or particularly egregious. Even if the expert opinion comes down in your favor, the law forces you into mediation before the litigation can proceed to discovery, adding additional legal expense on your part. Last of all, medical malpractice damages are capped at ~$656K as of 2023. "North Carolina requires all medical malpractice claims to provide testimony by a qualified medical professional in the same field of healthcare. They must review the details of the case, including the medical records, in order to affirm that the defendant indeed acted with negligence or violated their standard of care."

[@TheMelnTeam]

@@RickOSidhe If a fact pattern like "This guys is crazy because he is who he claims to be despite that nobody can present evidence that he is anybody else" isn't egregious, it's hard to picture anything is "egregious". Isn't confirming the identity of the patient one of the most basic standard of care practices in the medical industry, across the board? He was put in an institution for claiming to be the person they have on record. This scenario is so ridiculous that he'd be justified in escaping by force, and innocent for ANY conduct required to do so. If holding him with this fact pattern isn't malpractice, nothing such an institution can do is malpractice.

[@RickOSidhe]

@ You'd think that it would be exactly that cut-and-dried, but it usually isn't. No idea of the details of the commitment, so we don't know what we don't know. I'm assuming that he was brought in under an IVC (involuntary commitment), which means you have very few legal remedies available to you until a (usually) mandatory hearing before a judge/magistrate. Even then, the judge usually relies on the medical testimony to determine next steps - you aren't provided with legal representation and can't get it yourself due to various hurdles. Once you're in the system with a medical diagnosis of whatever, it's incredibly difficult to get out. Doesn't matter what the truth is - it's all about the diagnosis. Add in that law enforcement was involved and likely provided the identity information (or lack thereof), and he was in a world of hurt. Point being, the medical professionals likely relied on law enforcement to identify him as well as providing the behavioral details that led to the diagnosis. If anyone is to blame, it's law enforcement. Good luck suing them, though.

[@TheMelnTeam]

@ Law enforcement, DA, and judge involved in this case need more than a mere civil lawsuit. They are *criminal* conspirators. How the facility handled him as a patient might not be clear-cut. The conduct of the "legal system" is. He was blatantly denied due process, involuntarily committed for de facto pleading not guilty. A lawsuit is insufficient. There is no justice until each of those parties see a criminal trial before a jury as defendants. We both know it won't happen, though. And so our country goes a little more corrupt, until we get to the point where a group of armed people take the law into their own hands to punish people that act this way. With enough examples like this, their doing so would be every bit as legitimate as the court itself...more so, in fact.

[@brucejones2354]

The judge that sentence him should serve the same amount of time under the same circumstances........then possibly he would be more inclined to be considerably more thorough in the future !

[@n-steam]

The social security number shouldn't be able to be used as ID, or to be used to obtain ID. In the UK, our equivalent national insurance number can't be, and is only able to be used for paying taxes and claiming benefits. Nothing that would ruin your life like this.

[@NanaWilson-px9ij]

They've always said it can't be used for identification, but it always is.

[@billstewart1653]

My SSN was my Student ID Number when I started college in the '70s

[@GamesFromSpace]

It's not intended to be, but they also don't provide any alternatives, and only the government could run a program like that.

[@n-steam]

@@GamesFromSpace here we use combinations of things like birth certificates, multiple references from professionals that have known you for a while (e.g. a doctor, or teacher, employer). multiple examples of official correspondence (eg bank statements, utilty bills). Its not fool proof, but sets the bar a lot higher than just knowing a number.

[@GamesFromSpace]

​@@n-steam Uh, you can't do all that stuff for run of the mill identification over the phone. We have those documents too, and use them, but that's just not a reasonable standard to require.

[@artemismoon7655]

Surely they had a history of ID photos of this guy? Or fingerprints? I doubt it would have taken much research for the cops to verify his story before locking him up. That poor guy.

[@2WheeledShenanigan-gs7cl]

Most likely the biggest mistake the victim did was walk into the bank and contest the account, they should have retained an attorney beforehand and got his identity established.

[@coryfogle5353]

Other stories on this said the victim grifts between lowvincome and homelessness.

[@2WheeledShenanigan-gs7cl]

@@coryfogle5353 That's true but you can find those willing to help but does take some time to find them, or could've even walked into the PD first and explained the situation. I've learned it's best to just sit back and create a gameplan first.

[@bakedjesus1177]

That's one thing that annoys me is police don't investigate no more. They just show up we believe that guy go to jail.

[@brianwatson6002]

The identity thief was working as an IT professional at the University of Iowa Hospital no less and had been for quite a few years.

[@gordonshumway7239]

Raise that to a Baker's dozen ...

[@Eidolon1andOnly]

So instead of 12 years it's 13 years? Still too light of a sentence. Make it at least a life sentence if not 112 or more years.

[@newshodgepodge6329]

The identity thief should have been sentenced to serve one year in prison for every year that he spent trashing his victim's reputation.

[@Qusin111]

Identity Thief should be a life sentence, think about it, we would all be paying for him or her to have a life in prison, but someone is paying for this person to live anyways.

[@MissLibertarian]

The main thing for me is that if the man who started life as a homeless 16 year old and got a job and had a family he was supporting is acting in fear for his life (loss of job, family, success, and freedom) by perpetuating the fraud, or whether he was actually unfeeling (due to brain injury) and a danger to others, before imposing sentence.

[@valarianne2284]

At some point he had to know what he was doing was wrong. Doesn't matter how he felt about it. He knew it was wrong and did it anyway - that right there is the problem. Breaking the law has consequences. What he put the victim through is horrifying, and nothing can compensate him for being locked up, forcibly medicated, and having people think he's crazy. I'm thinking 12 years just isn't enough.

[@MissLibertarian]

@@valarianne2284 You think jail is for revenge? It's to make you feel like it's enough? I think it's to prevent a repeat and keep the public safer. How long varies with how well the culprit learns his lesson. Can he feel shame? Does he understand what he did? Or is he too dangerous to let out? It doesn't seem like you care about the answers to those questions. Yes, he did it anyway. Years ago. Many people take time to mature.

[@johnswan3608]

That judge should be disbarred

[@MrKlarthums]

12 years isn't enough. The judge, prosecutor, and police who put the real man in jail (and a mental institution) for nearly two years should join the id thief in jail for a long vacation while training on how to identify people. The only reason the id thief got 12 years was probably because the "justice" system got so badly embarrassed. They're projecting damages caused by the system's own incompetence and lack of accountability onto the sentence.

[@spinalobifida]

Forced to be medicated?! For what? That guy should have gotten more that 12 damn years. How did he get an ID when the real one already has one?

[@TheMelnTeam]

At least some of the burden of legal consequences must be assigned to other people in this story. The ID thief was a criminal. So was the judge who declared the victim incompetent, and multiple people at the institution that forcibly medicated the victim. "This guy is who he says he is per our records" is not grounds to conclude insanity/incompetence. The only way they could (reasonably) defend against malpractice is if they had different information about the victim than he claimed.

[@01cthompson]

In the 1990s a coworker went through a similar situation. In his case someone stole his ID, got arrested for a crime in another state, used that fake ID (driver's license), and skipped on his bail. Despite a detective in that other state realizing the mug shot didn't match the DMV picture it took almost two years to get the warrant to go away. Scary stuff.

[@ianbattles7290]

Back in 2008, I was threatened with 12 years in prison *just for possessing $50-worth of drugs in my own home.*

[@jenf1387]

There's a guy in Mississippi doing life for 1.5oz of weed because of some BS 3 strike law.

[@terryhayward7905]

The victim deserves compensation paid by the ID thief from the $100,000 a year that he was earning using the victims name, and from the police who refused to check his identity when told how they could do it.

[@Alastriona]

I just got it. Steve put a woodchuck on his set on Groundhog Day. Does this mean I have to watch this video again.

[@jilbertb]

🤣

[@Loruca]

@@jilbertb and again.

[@Caffin8tor]

Anybody remember that life lock commercial where the guy publicly announced his social security number? From what I heard it did not turn out well for him. And that's why they don't do that anymore.

[@abraxaszee8953]

This reminds me of “The Principal and the Pauper”: Chalmers: “Do you know anything about being a school principal?” The “Real” Seymour Skinner: “No, but if someone pretending to be me could do it then logically the real me must be even more qualified.” Chalmers: “Good enough.”

[@1anthonybrowning]

This is the second story lately of the state forcibly medicating innocent people. If our government did that to foreigners it would be a war crime, but when it does it to its own citizens it y it s covered by immunity.

[@sirsweet3022]

Wouldn’t he be able to file a lawsuit for all of that time spent. I’d wager a guess that he suffered some real mental stress being medicated in a psychiatric ward and thrown in jail. Anyone in his position would.

[@brianerickson6775]

I would be tick off, if someone else is living my "best" life, instead of me.

[@gothicel]

Should the judge and prosecutor that threw the victim in jail be jail for at least a year, those bastards wrongly imprisoned a man.

[@fetchstixRHD]

At least three times the time that the identity thief got sentenced to - it's their whole job to have made sure to have investigated properly in the first place

[@kevinlee7263]

Seems like the victim should be able to sue the identity thief for everything he's worth, including any retirement benefits from his job and all of the social security benefits he would have been entitled to.

[@wcl598]

Sounds somewhat like a squatter taking over your house then having you jailed for trespassing. You would think somebody would come up with a way that could prove who a person is. I hope the victim in this case sues for millions. I volunteer to be on the jury.

[@user-no1cares]

Ben’s clinging to #71.

[@Bobs-Wrigles5555]

7 seconds between us, maybe I should stop typing "Steve's LHS"...😉 Mornin' Bill

[@user-no1cares]

@@Bobs-Wrigles5555 I’ve fallen behind on the Ben search from spelling errors, typos, Ben blindness & brain freeze. Sometimes all in one comment. G’nite Bob.

[@luck484]

There was a California Judge that jailed the victim of this crime. I am wondering how many cases this Judge presided over and decided per year. Is this a 1/100 error or 1/100,000. I am guessing the Judge did his best and did not believe it to be possible that another explanation existed for what was presented and how he ruled. I don't feel its appropriate to attempt to sue the Judge for making an error.

[@valarianne2284]

I think we can blame him. He's the judge and at any time could have established his correct identity. Simple as getting family members to confirm he is who he says he is. With all the mistaken identity and identity theft we hear about it shouldn't be rocket science to confirm any one's identity. Before you sentence someone to forced medication and lock up in a mental ward you should HAVE to confirm you have the right person.

[@jenf1387]

The thief was making over $100k using the victim's name and social. Where's the bank account? House? Car? If it's in his name and social he would be the owner.

[@NinjaBraap]

Dude deserves life in prison, and the cops and courts need to face time as well.

[@arizwebfoot]

I have absolutely loved teasing you about that woodchuck, ever since you originally aired the story.

[@jilbertb]

I have tried looking on line for a stuffed one, could never find one!

[@idristaylor5093]

Ben is flat out on the roof of the 71 car.

[@Bobs-Wrigles5555]

Good afternoon Idris

[@idristaylor5093]

@@Bobs-Wrigles5555 Good afternoon. I hope you are enjoying Steve's new "surprise mechanics" for posting times. 😀

[@Bobs-Wrigles5555]

@@idristaylor5093 I think you call that "popup" videos😁

[@werefrogofassyria6609]

This was an episode of Dan Vs. However, in that one, some guy was stealing Dan's identity while Dan was on trial for some crimes. Dan eventually let that guy have the identity and created a new for himself, and the identity thief winds up going to jail for the crime Dan committed because he had Dan's documents and everything.

[@silkvelvet2616]

That story is so incredibly sad. The thief did not get enough punishment. It wasn't just his initial victim whose life was totally devastated, it was also the woman he married and their children., he shohave gotten triple that before parole

[@_Pyroon_]

I always wonder what would go through a judge's head when they hear they made an objectively awful decision...

[@username7763]

Never underestimate the human ability to rationalize what we do. We like to view ourselves as mostly good, and we are smart enough to come up with reasons to defend it enough to fool ourselves.

[@haneyoakie14]

My name is Elmer J Fudd, millionaire. I own a mansion and a yacht.

[@leehype]

The lesson here is do not carry your SS card or any other identifying documents on you besides whats required. I was taught that lesson by a parent before it became a problem. And a short time later when my wallet was stolen, I only lost and needed to replace an ID. Those other documents, like your birth certificate, SS card, and other records anyone could use to make your life hell, those never leave your hiding place unless they are in use.

[@SPboxcar67290l]

The Internet has made it basically impossible to protect your SSAN.

[@leehype]

@@SPboxcar67290l That does not mean you should hand your info to someone on a silver platter. Make the bastards work for it.

[@tenzhitihsien888]

The minimum sentence should have been equal to the time he had assumed the victim's identity.

[@ladyddelpheine5993]

i smell lawsuit against cities and hosptial!!!

[@calebfielding6352]

He should be able to sue the judge who was clearly wrong

[@SadPuppySoup]

Sounds like an episode of The Twilight Zone

[@drawingmomentum]

Just last night, I watched an Alfred Hitchcock episode where a guy was serepticiously and methodically taking over his doppelganger's life and identity.

[@Bhallmed]

the police and prosecutors not letting him prove has case in the first place is wrong.

[@TheMelnTeam]

Specifically, it's a crime.

[@SirKilla04]

This will be a movie one day.

[@johanlaurasia]

So the victim is in good shape now... as long as he doesn't move into an HOA

[@TheRealScooterGuy]

Or rent from Hertz...

[@danbusey]

Have any of the perps that put that man away apologized to him? I doubt it.

[@canoetipper019]

So really...the identity thief's stolen life is over...and his own is just getting a much needed reboot. I trust the victim will get his life back, as much as he can at least.

[@valarianne2284]

My question is did being forcibly medicated with drugs that were NOT appropriate cause any permanent damage? Other than the trauma and horror of being locked up and not believed? I'm sure the victim has PTSD - but what do those drugs do to you if you're perfectly sane and do not need them? That would worry me! The victim should be able to sue - this is gross negligence.

[@j.rileyindependentproductions]

This hits very close to home. My brother has had a fake ID made with my information and provided it whenever interacting with the police. Had to have been a good ID, right? Yet, there is a repeating number in my ID, and it is/was apparently missing one, yet the officers must have just assumed they'd entered it incorrectly. Keep in mind, this could easily mean that I'd lose custody of my children. 1. A law service solicited their services on me, allowing me to find out that there was an arraignment hearing for me coming up... despite me never having committed a crime. I show up, and it turns out it was petty theft. One look at me and both the Public Defender and Prosecutor believed there was some sort of mistake. Thumbprint on ticket was smeared, so they couldn't use that to identify me and the arresting officer as unavailable. However, the arresting officer had taken notes of specific tattoos... which I have none of, but they sounded familiar as it was what my brother had tagged all over his N64 when we were younger. Sure enough, my ex (who'd already been my ex by that point) still had my brother as a friend on her unused MySpace. There, not only did he have that (text from the tattoo) all over his MySpace, he had a group picture of the gang he was a part of ON HIS MYSPACE. Had fun turning that over to the police and getting a factual find of innocence, even though the DA's office took TWO YEARS to clear it from their systems. 2. While the above was happening, it reminded me that my brother had been stopped by the police for a traffic situation weeks prior that I'd overheard my dad discussing on the phone (I was my dad's caregiver at the time), and got in trouble for providing a fake ID. Likely mine, as mine was an ID and not a license. But they GAVE IT BACK TO HIM! 3. Years later, I was preparing to move for the second time after my father's passing, because the apartment complex I had moved to had been sold and I had to move out or be homeless and lose my kids (much longer story, "when it rains", right?). Every couple months I'd go into the sheriff's office to see if there was anything on me due to my brother. Everytime I'd be told that they checked and nothing. Then one day, a woman at the desk was about to hand me back my ID, but then said, "Hold on, let me check something." She came back telling me that there was a bench warrant out for me but with my name misspelled. It'd been active for 1.5 years... for fishing without a license. I don't fish. I get violently ill handling raw meat and would be a vegetarian if it weren't for my child's severe allergies to all high-content, non-meat-based proteins. I likely would have been fine for a while, had I not checked with the sheriff's office, but now it was linked to my correct name. Any decent background check would come back that I had the bench warrant out on me and I could lose a place to move to, plus I was working in education. If officers came and arrested me on campus, I'd be done for career-wise, even if the next day, 80-point headlines ran across the paper saying "Exonerated". So, I had to take time off of work and immediately get it cleared up. I got in front of the judge two days later, and he cleared the warrant and I challenged the fine of $1,000 because it wasn't me. I went through county records and found a copy of the ticket, turns out this thumbprint was fully intact. I could finally get that asswipe caught on identity fraud. Before the hearing, I'd spoken with the citing officer, he didn't recognize me, said that my brother may look familiar (I'd pulled up his facebook), and said that he was certain he was handed an ID and must have just written the name down incorrectly. However, when I went to the hearing, the citing officer asked for a dismissal based on the situation and the judge granted it, and refused my request to compare the thumbprints with a factual find of innocence. Since it was "just a ticket" for something minor, no one would listen to help me clear this so that my brother would face the consequences. So, now, I am still waiting until the asswipe ends up using my information once again, ruining my life. DMV won't even allow me to change the ID numbers without him having been arrested FOR having the fake ID.

[@dirtfarmer7070]

Isn't bureaucracy grand?

[@jerseyshoredroneservices225]

Gotta love that great police work that jailed the wrong guy. What evidence did they use in the second investigation that they couldn't have used in the first investigation? A relatives DNA? Couldn't they have done that the first time around? I'd call that ridiculous incompetence and criminal negligence 🤬

[@defendandprotect-om5hv]

I always say that it is an advantage to have poor credit so no one wants to steal your identity.😊

[@Reaperofwind]

Identity thief increases the victims social security payout all those years paying in.😂

[@lusitaniafilms]

He needs a 50 year in Prison.

[@seymourpro6097]

With DNA testing being a routine medical lab test, failure to use a DNA test initially could be seen as deliberate misconduct.

[@TheMelnTeam]

Even without DNA, it defies logic that the courts would go this route. Both of these people would have a long paper trail as the victim's ID, not just one of them. Which means a non-criminal judge MUST use some other means to search for the truth. Like asking relatives for both sides, for instance. Or tracing their histories back before the point where two people started using one identity. Things that would easily come up in criminal court, were the victim not blatantly denied basic due process in a conspiracy against rights.

[@johnswan3608]

I might be taking this verse out of context but in this case I think it would would apply Ex21:16 And he that stealeth a man, and selleth him, or if he be found in his hand, he shall surely be put to death.

[@danielhoward8354]

Where is the guys birth certificate? I bet the Identity thief doesnt have one. Judge should go to jail.

[@freethebirds3578]

With the right information, you can get a duplicate from the state.

[@tjburr1968]

You must know the name of the town of your birth however.

[@TheJase8566]

Sounds like the cops, prosecutors and judge dun goofed and should be held liable