Sussex County Fake ID Student Issues
Sussex County high school and college students face fake ID issues. Fake IDs may not seem very high on the list of the challenges Sussex County students face. But don't underestimate how easily and severely fake ID charges could harm your high school or college student. If your Sussex County high school or college student doesn't face fake ID issues yet, make sure your student knows the risks. And if your student already faces fake ID charges, be sure to retain the best available Sussex County fake ID defense attorneys. Retain the Lento Law Firm's premier Criminal Defense Team and preeminent New Jersey criminal defense attorney Joseph D. Lento to defend Sussex County fake ID charges.
Underage minors should know better than to use fake ID to buy beer, wine, cigarettes, or e-cigarettes or for entry into adults-only bars and clubs, although the temptation and peer pressure can be considerable. But Sussex County students may not fully appreciate that using fake ID for laudable things like access to campus gyms, pools, dining discounts, bookstore discounts, computers, libraries, and sports arenas or entertainment halls can also result in criminal charges and school discipline. Students at Sussex County Community College and other Sussex County area colleges, and high school students in Sparta Township, Hopatcong, Wantage, Newton, Byram Township, Hardyston, Andover Township, Frankford, and other Sussex County towns and townships face serious fake ID temptations, concerns, issues. Learn here what might happen and what to do about it.
Sussex County Fake ID Student Problems
Sussex County high school and college students may not be as wise, mature, and well-informed about fake ID issues as their parents. Students may mistakenly assume, in the face of great temptation, that fake IDs are no big issue. They may see other underage students buying beer or wine in Newton, Wantage, and other Sussex County towns or getting into Sussex County adults-only bars or clubs. Sussex County Community College students may see or hear of other students using fake IDs for meal access, materials discounts, and other amenities and services. Those actions, though, can result in serious criminal charges and school punishments. If your Sussex County high school or college student faces fake ID charges, retain a premier fake ID defense attorney.
Sussex County Charges Fake IDs Crimes
Sussex County students possessing fake ID aren't committing minor civil infractions facing a ticket and a small fine. They instead face serious New Jersey criminal charges and jail or even prison time. Beware, too, that New Jersey criminalizes more than just presenting fake ID for alcohol at a Newton bar or Sparta Township party store. Fake ID crimes also include simply possessing a fake ID or buying vaping materials or tobacco products. Sussex County fake ID criminal charges against your high school or college student are a very serious matter warranting that you retain the best available criminal defense attorney.
Sussex County Fake ID Criminal Penalties
Premier defense representation can help your Sussex County high school or college student navigate New Jersey's criminal process for the best possible outcome in the face of severe criminal penalties. The most-serious New Jersey fake ID crime can bring ten years in prison and a $150,000 fine. Tell your Sussex County student that fake ID penalty before your student begins a senior year in high school or first year at college. Retain the best available Sussex County fake ID defense attorney if you must defend your student against Sussex County fake ID charges.
Sussex County ID Tampering Charges
New Jersey has four levels of fake ID crime. New Jersey's lowest-level fake ID crime is tampering. New Jersey Statute Section 2C:28-7 defines tampering as when the defendant:
"(1) Knowingly makes a false entry in, or false alteration of, any record, document or thing belonging to, or received or kept by, the government for information or record, or required by law to be kept by others for information of the government; (2) Makes, presents, offers for filing, or uses any record, document or thing knowing it to be false, and with purpose that it be taken as a genuine part of information or records referred to in paragraph (1); or (3) Purposely and unlawfully destroys, conceals, removes, mutilates, or otherwise impairs the verity or availability of any such record, document or thing."
Your Sussex County high school or college student could, for instance, face a tampering charge by changing the student's driver's license birth year for something like buying alcohol or vaping materials. As a low-level disorderly persons offense, tampering brings up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine. First-time offenders may, depending on the Sussex County prosecutor's discretion and the advocacy of your retained defense attorney for reduced or dismissed charges, face only tampering charges when the evidence supports a more-serious fake ID charge.
Sussex County Fake ID Possession Charges
New Jersey's second level of fake ID crime involves possessing a fake ID. New Jersey Statute Section 2C:21-2.1(d) defines possession as follows:
"A person who knowingly possesses a document or other writing which falsely purports to be a driver's license, birth certificate, or other document issued by a governmental agency and which could be used as a means of verifying a person's identity or age or any other personal identifying information is guilty of a crime of the fourth degree."
Your Sussex County high school or college student could, for instance, face a possession charge if police searched and arrested your student outside a bar or liquor store or elsewhere with fake ID in a pocket, purse, or backpack. Possession is a fourth-degree offense punished by up to eighteen months in jail and a $10,000 fine. Other fake ID crimes also involve possession. Sussex County prosecutors, thus, often have the discretion to choose a higher or lower-level fake ID crime to charge. That discretion makes the skill, experience, and reputation of the defense attorney you retain to represent your Sussex County high school or college student all the more important in advocating for a dismissed or reduced charge.
Sussex County Fake ID Use Charges
New Jersey's third level of fake ID crime is using fake ID. New Jersey Statute Section 2C:21-2.1(c) defines the use as:
"A person who knowingly exhibits, displays, or utters a document or other writing which falsely purports to be a driver's license, birth certificate, or other document issued by a governmental agency and which could be used as a means of verifying a person's identity or age or any other personal identifying information is guilty of a crime of the third degree."
Your Sussex County high school or college student could face, for instance, face use charges if showing a fake ID to buy cigarettes or an e-cigarette at a retail outlet or alcohol at a bar. The use crime is a third-degree offense bringing up to five years in prison and a $15,000 fine. Sussex County prosecutors have the discretion to charge use as only possession or just tampering. An underage student using fake ID to buy alcohol can also face a minor in possession (MIP) charge.
Sussex County Fake ID Sale Charges
New Jersey's fourth level of fake ID crime involves fake ID sales or transfer. New Jersey Statute Section 2C:21-2.1(a) defines the sale or transfer as:
"A person who knowingly sells, offers or exposes for sale, or otherwise transfers, or possesses with the intent to sell, offer or expose for sale, or otherwise transfer, a document, printed form or other writing which falsely purports to be a driver's license, birth certificate, or other document issued by a governmental agency and which could be used as a means of verifying a person's identity or age or any other personal identifying information is guilty of a crime of the second degree."
Your Sussex County high school or college student could, for instance, face a sale or transfer charge if your student sold or loaned a fake ID to a friend so that the friend could join your student in a bar or club. The sale crime is a second-degree offense punished with five to ten years imprisonment and up to a $150,000 fine. Sussex County prosecutors may decide to charge sale or transfer only as use, possession, or tampering. Retain the best available defense attorney to skillfully advocate for dismissal or reduction of the charge.
Sussex County Fake ID Charge Impacts
Sussex County high school and college students face other serious consequences if convicted of fake ID crime. New Jersey Statute Section 2C:21-2.1(e) mandates driver's license suspension for six months to two years. The court may also impose community service. Sussex County school districts also punish fake ID and other crimes under student codes of conduct. Sussex County Community College or the other college or university your student attends will also likely have policies against student crime under which your student could face suspension or expulsion. Lesser school sanctions can include loss of school privileges, honors, and awards. Fake ID criminal conviction can also mean not getting into a preferred college or university and not qualifying for a trade or professional licenses or preferred job opportunities.
Premier Fake ID Defense Attorney for Sussex County Charges
Retain the Lento Law Firm's premier Criminal Defense Team and preeminent New Jersey criminal defense attorney Joseph D. Lento to defend Sussex County fake ID charges. Call 888.535.3686 or go online now for the best available Sussex County fake ID defense representation.
