October 28, 2008

Supreme Court to Hear Case of Illegal Immigrant Charged with Identity Theft

On October 20, 2008, the Supreme Court of the United States granted certiorari to hear the case of U.S. v. Flores-Figueroa.

The Supreme Court’s decision will have a significant impact on undocumented workers who use fake identification belonging to another person. The Supreme Court will determine what federal prosecutors must prove to establish aggravated identity theft. Specifically, at issue is whether the government has the burden to prove that the person knew that the identification they were using belonged to another person. Under federal law, aggravated identify theft occurs when a person “knowingly transfers, possesses, or uses, without lawful authority, a means of identification of another person.” 

In U.S. v. Flores-Figueroa, 274 Fed. Appx. 501, No. 07-2871 (8th Cir. April 23, 2008), Mr. Ignacio Flores-Figueroa, a Mexican illegal immigrant, was convicted of aggravated identity theft for using a fraudulent alien registration number and social security number belonging to another person to obtain a job in Illinois, and was sentenced to more than six years in prison. Mr. Flores-Figueroa argued that he thought the identification was fabricated and did not know the identifying information actually belonged to another person. He also argued that the government had the burden to prove he knew the identification belonged to another person to establish aggravated identity theft. The 8th Circuit found against Mr. Flores-Figueroa, holding that the knowledge requirement applied only to the transfer, possession or use of false identification and did not include knowledge that the false identification belonged to another person.

There has been a divide among appellate courts on this issue in related cases, and the Supreme Court is expected to resolve the conflicting interpretation of the knowledge requirement in aggravated identity theft. The Supreme Court will hear arguments on this case next year. Flores-Figueroa v. U.S., No. 08-108, 2008. 

GT will provide updates as they become available.