Can You Be Arrested with a Warrant for Someone Else?
For the second time, Gerber Guzman’s wife has had to fight to have her innocent husband released from prison. Guzman was arrested during a routine traffic stop for an expired car registration. During the stop, the officers ran his records and determined that a warrant was out for the arrest of someone with his name.
According to Guzman’s wife Yanira Hernandez, her husband’s identity was stolen six years ago and the warrant was issued by mistake. CBS News reports that the same problem occurred six years ago when Guzman spent 16 days in L.A. County Jail on drug-related charges. His name was cleared at that time as well.
The Drug Enforcement Agency acknowledged their mistake six years ago and assured Guzman that it would never happen again. Unfortunately, that was not the case. They released a statement regarding the Guzman situation saying, “the man in custody is not the same person for whom the arrest warrant was issued.”1
While Guzman was released after a week of sitting in jail, the stress he and his wife went through is unimaginable. This same stress was felt by Denver Colorado resident Christina Fourhorn.
One afternoon, Fourhorn looked outside of her home to see three police cars pull into her front yard. They had a warrant for her arrest. According to CNN News, she was arrested under charges of robbery shortly thereafter. Having her belongings taken and clothes stripped, Fourhorn waited in a Colorado jail for five days until her husband bailed her out.
As it turned out, police were actually looking for Christin Fourhorn, an Oklahoma resident. In Colorado alone, the American Civil Liberties Union reported 237 mistaken arrests as of 2010.2
What to Do if Arrested with a Warrant for Someone Else
If you are arrested because someone stole your identity, or a warrant was meant for someone else with the same name, it is absolutely crucial that you consult with an experienced criminal defense attorney who can help you prove your innocence.
If the police have a warrant for someone else with the same name as you and place you under arrest, there are a few things you need to do. First, as in the case of Gerber Guzman, this may have happened because your identity was stolen.
Criminal identity theft occurs when an identity thief is arrested and gives personal information that is not their own.3 For example, they might fraudulently use your driver’s license and name and provide this information to law enforcement during an arrest. This can lead to you being arrested for a crime that you did not commit later on.
When an identity thief uses your information during an arrest, you will then have a criminal arrest on your record. This information will then likely be entered into the FBI’s National Crime Information Center.4 Having this information on your record can lead to you being arrested and make it difficult for you to obtain employment.
If you are arrested because of a misidentification, it is important that you keep track of several things:
- Any conversations you had with law enforcement including their names, dates, etc.;
- Any expenses you sustained due to the arrest; and
- Any documents or letters regarding your arrest.5
Your Attorney’s Role
First, your attorney should contact the arresting law enforcement agency and help explain the misidentification. They should then request all of the data that was collected during your arrest such as mug shots and fingerprints. An attorney who is experienced in these matters will gather all of the necessary information to prove your innocence.6
Requesting the proper documents and information is essential to proving your innocence. Your attorney should:
- Ask the law enforcement agency that arrested you to compare any fingerprints or photographs to establish your innocence;
- Follow up with the arresting agency and make sure the arrest warrant is recalled and a certificate of release is issued (if you were arrested or booked); and
- Request that the law enforcement agency update their records and makes sure they are changed to the impostor’s identity.7
Contact Your Criminal Defense Attorneys at Wallin & Klarich Today
If you or a loved one has been arrested under someone else’s name, following up with the arresting law enforcement agency is just one of the many ways your attorney will get you through this. The attorneys at Wallin and Klarich have been successfully defending our clients who have been wrongly arrested for over 40 years.
With offices located in Orange County, San Bernardino, Los Angeles, Torrance, Riverside, West Covina, Victorville, Ventura, San Diego and Sherman Oaks, one of our knowledgeable attorneys is here to help you no matter where you or your loved one has been arrested.
Call us today at (877) 4-NO-JAIL or (877) 466-5245 for a free phone consultation. We will get through this together.
1. [http://www.cbsnews.com/news/dea-admits-california-mans-arrest-was-mistake/]↩
2. [http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/02/15/colorado.mistaken.identity.arrest/]↩
3. [http://identitytheftnetwork.org/gethelp/my-name-was-used-falsely-in-an-arrest]↩
4. [Id.]↩
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