No matter where you are in the United States, forgery is a serious crime. And if you’re living in Arizona, or you know someone who is, it's no exception to the rule.

The punishment for breaking laws in Arizona is similar to how it’s carried out in other states. This article will cover what forgery is and how Arizona defines and punishes those who break laws against forgery and related crimes.

What is forgery

Forgery is the act of altering or unlawfully creating documents. The most common example of forgery is the act of signing someone else’s name on a legal document.

Another type of well-known forgery method is the act of counterfeiting. Counterfeiting is the act of creating something, such as a legal document, that is falsified in nature. For example, some people engage in the counterfeiting of money – creating fake paper money to use it as legal tender.

Forgery is a classification of an act rather than a definition of one. What that means is there is more than one way to commit forgery, such as:

• signature forgery
• art forgery
• prescription forgery
• identification forgery
• city or state forgery
• federal forgery

If you are still unsure of what forgery is or what it means, the Criminal Defense Lawyer website does a great job of breaking this down.

How does Arizona define Forgery?

The way that Arizona law defines it in Ariz. Rev. Stat. 13-2002 is that a person commits forgery if he/she/they:

• Falsely tampers with or alters a written instrument
• Knowingly owns a forged written instrument or forgery tool OR
• Presents a forged instrument as real or owns one that contains any amount of falsified information.

Arizona law makes use of the word instrument, but what does it mean in this context. A written instrument, according to Ariz. Rev. State. 13-2001, means one of two things. It means either:

• Anything that contains written or printed information that has legal or substantial importance

OR

• Any kind of image, trademark, approval stamp, access device, or any symbols of value, personal information, or other types of privileges.

How does Arizona define the legality of Forgery

Arizona only defines forgery as illegal if the intentions were to use it with the intent to defraud. The intent to defraud means scheming to legally deceive or lie. One could legally use someone else’s signature or work as long as they are not trying to deceive other people.

An example that might explain the difference between legal and illegal forgery is as follows. If someone were to copy a famous person’s signature to give to a museum as a replica of the real thing, then that is completely legal.

However, if the same person were to copy that signature and try to sell an item with that signature, then it is illegal to do so if the person was indicating that the signature was real.

Illegal possession of Forgery Tools

It is also illegal to possess any kind of tools meant for forgery or for the purpose of making forgery tools. Forgery tools can be anything ranging from a stamp to computer software.

A tool is defined as a forgery tool if it is altered or made for the purpose of creating false information or documents. If you’re wondering what some other forgery tools could be, check out the US Legal website, which goes through forgery tools in detail.

Just like with forgery, possessing forgery tools is only illegal if the accused knowingly owns them or has the intent to forge items with them. If it can’t be proved that one is guilty of using them, then that person is innocent.

The court has to prove the accused person has intent because sometimes the people that don’t want to be convicted will give other people their forging tools. They will pass them off as legitimate tools to fool the person into receiving illegal equipment. The person that was using the tool wants the new owner to get punished instead of them and to get rid of any evidence that they were involved to avoid punishment.

Punishment

The Arizona punishment system is pulled together into classes. Each class has a set amount of time the accused is imprisoned. The judge could also give an aggravated or mitigate charge, either lengthening or shortening the terms. For more information, check out the Criminal Defense Attorney website, which breaks down these class divisions in detail.

Forgery itself is a class four felony, but if the forgery was used to gain or use a significant amount of money, then it is classified as a class three felony. A class four felony is punishable by up to two and a half years, with the aggravated term three years and nine months. A class three felony is punishable by up to three and a half years and the aggravated term is eight years and nine months.

The possession of a forgery tool is either a class five or a class six felony. A class five felony is two years with the aggravated charge being two and a half years. A class six felony is one year with the aggravated charge being two years.

In Arizona, you may also be fined for a sum of money. The amount of the fine can be no larger than one-hundred and fifty thousand dollars.

What are potential ways to defend against Forgery charges?

If someone is charged with forgery or fraud in Arizona, then knowing the best ways to defend themselves is very important. There are only a couple of ways that one could plea to possibly get freed of charges. It starts with proving:

• That they lacked any intent to commit fraud
• Lacked knowledge of possessing forgery tools
• Didn’t have intent to use forgery tools for committing forgery OR
• That they are a peace officer committing forgery for their duties

Getting help when charged with Forgery

The best way to get help is by hiring a local defense attorney to defend against the prosecutor. Defending one’s self is extremely difficult, but some people dedicate their careers to defending people who are being charged with felonies, and some even specialize in specific charges.

Hiring a local defense attorney can be better than hiring a general attorney because local defense attorneys are familiar with the specific state laws, thus they know the best way to defend their clients in the case of need. A defense attorney also knows more about the legal process than most people and is an extremely helpful resource when determining one’s best legal course of action.

Afterward

All in all, the way forgery is punished in Arizona is not unlike how it is punished in other states. However, the stratification of punishment is unique to the state itself. For that reason, anyone accused of forgery must seek out a professional that knows the law well enough to defend them.

If you are charged with forgery or the possession of forgery tools in Arizona, your best avenue is to hire a local defense attorney. The forgery charges are severe and if you are falsely accused, then you have several pleas that you could use to defend yourself.