§ 16-35

Mandating law enforcement agencies to accept and provide reports; judicial factual determination. (a) A person who has learned or reasonably suspects that his or her personal identifying information has been unlawfully used by another may initiate a law enforcement investigation by contacting the local law enforcement agency that has jurisdiction over his or her actual residence, which shall take a police report of the matter, provide the complainant with a copy of that report, and begin an investigation of the facts, or, if the suspected crime was committed in a different jurisdiction, refer the matter to the law enforcement agency where the suspected crime was committed for an investigation of the facts. (b) A person who reasonably believes that he or she is the victim of financial identity theft may petition a court, or upon application of the prosecuting attorney or on its own motion, the court may move for an expedited judicial determination of his or her factual innocence, where the perpetrator of the financial identity theft was arrested for, cited for, or convicted of a crime under the victim's identity, or where a criminal complaint has been filed against the perpetrator in the victim's name, or where the victim's identity has been mistakenly associated with a criminal conviction. Any judicial determination of factual innocence made pursuant to this subsection may be heard and determined upon declarations, affidavits, police reports, or other material, relevant, and reliable information submitted by the parties or ordered to be part of the record by the court. If the court determines that the petition or motion is meritorious and that there is no reasonable cause to believe that the victim committed the offense for which the perpetrator of the identity theft was arrested, cited, convicted, or subject to a criminal complaint in the victim's name, or that the victim's identity has been mistakenly associated with a record of criminal conviction, the court shall find the victim factually innocent of that offense. If the victim is found factually innocent, the court shall issue an order certifying this determination. (c) After a court has issued a determination of factual innocence under this Section, the court may order the name and associated personal identifying information contained in the court records, files, and indexes accessible by the public sealed, deleted, or labeled to show that the data is impersonated and does not reflect the defendant's identity. (d) A court that has issued a determination of factual innocence under this Section may at any time vacate that determination if the petition, or any information submitted in support of the petition, is found to contain any material misrepresentation or fraud. (e) Except for criminal and civil actions provided for by Sections 16-30 through 16-36, or for disciplinary or licensure-related proceedings involving the violation of Sections 16-30 through 16-36, no information acquired by, or as a result of, any violation of Section 16-30 shall be discoverable or admissible in any court or other proceeding, or otherwise subject to disclosure without the express permission of any person or persons identified in that information.

Legislative History

(Source: P.A. 97-597, eff. 1-1-12.)