People v. Fort
| Decision Date | 26 April 2019 |
| Docket Number | No. 1-17-0644,1-17-0644 |
| Parties | The PEOPLE of the State of Illinois, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Michael FORT, Defendant-Appellant. |
| Court | United States Appellate Court of Illinois |
¶ 1 Defendant, Michael Fort, appeals his conviction, after a bench trial, of Class 1 attempted identity theft and his sentence of seven years' imprisonment. On appeal, defendant contends that his conviction should be reversed, and the cause remanded for a new trial, where (1) the State failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that he knowingly used the personal identification of another person when he filled out an application to lease a Mercedes-Benz, (2) the evidence did not support a finding that defendant attempted to obtain control of property valued over $ 100,000, and (3) the State failed to prove that defendant intended to defraud the car dealership beyond a reasonable doubt. For the foregoing reasons, we reverse and remand for further proceedings.
¶ 3 The trial court sentenced defendant on February 2, 2017. Defendant filed a notice of appeal on March 2, 2017. Accordingly, this court has jurisdiction pursuant to article VI, section 6, of the Illinois Constitution ( Ill. Const. 1970, art. VI, § 6 ) and Illinois Supreme Court Rules 603 (eff. Feb. 6, 2013) and 606 (eff. Dec. 11, 2014), governing appeals from a final judgment of conviction in a criminal case entered below.
¶ 5 Defendant was charged by indictment with one count of Class 1 attempted identity theft, one count of Class 3 identity theft, and two counts of forgery, in connection with his attempt to use a social security number ending in 2282 to lease a Mercedes-Benz S550 on February 13, 2016.
¶ 6 At defendant's bench trial, Kelly Rodriguez testified that she is the finance manager at a Mercedes-Benz dealership located on 1000 West Golf Road in Hoffman Estates, Illinois. On February 13, 2016, Rodriguez met with defendant regarding his lease application. Prior to meeting with him, Rodriguez had received documents from sales manager Ron Genot, including an "e-pencil" which she described as "an agreement upon terms." The e-pencil showed "an agreement upon the length of the lease, the miles per year of the lease, the down payment, the monthly payment, and then the final out the door price of the lease." Rodriguez testified that the Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price of the specific Mercedes defendant attempted to lease was "approximately $ 120,000. $ 119,705.00 to be exact."
¶ 7 Rodriguez also received defendant's credit application, in which he provided his name, social security number, date of birth, address, phone number, and employment and income information. Defendant's application listed a social security number ending in 2282, listed Aeon Management as his employer, and had 201 Lake Street in Oak Park, Illinois, as his address. Rodriguez made a routine inquiry with TransUnion and discovered that the credit score "came up as zero and said that nothing could be processed any further because there was a freeze placed by the consumer on that Social Security number." Rodriguez met with defendant and informed him of the freeze. He told her that he never put a freeze on his credit and "didn't understand why it was on there." Although Rodriguez offered defendant the use of the dealership's computers to investigate the issue, defendant stated he would go home to investigate and return later.
¶ 8 Defendant was able to lift the freeze from his credit, and his credit application was forwarded to Mercedes-Benz Financial. They asked Rodriguez for a copy of defendant's social security card "because it was coming back linked to multiple users." Defendant sent an e-mail with a copy of the card, and Rodriguez forwarded the e-mail to Mercedes-Benz Financial. The card had defendant's name on it, and the last four numbers were 2282. Rodriguez later spoke with a funding specialist, who told her that she received the e-mail and found the card "questionable" because the font did not look accurate or correct. The specialist told Rodriguez that she was going to forward the matter to the Mercedes-Benz fraud division.
¶ 9 On cross-examination, Rodriguez acknowledged that Mercedes-Benz held the title to a leased vehicle, but that "the registered owner" would be the person leasing the vehicle. She stated that "the value of the car is what the value of the car is regardless of what you pay for your lease payment." Rodriguez had asked defendant specifically to verify his social security number, name and spelling, and signature. He never referred to the number he provided as a credit profile number.
¶ 10 Ryan Pesch testified that the last four digits of his social security number is 2282, and he did not give anyone permission to use his number to obtain credit. He did not know defendant or give him permission to use his social security number to obtain credit. He became aware of the use of his social security number on February 17, 2016, when he received a phone call from the Mercedes-Benz fraud department.
¶ 11 Detective Brian Zaba testified that he works as an officer with the Hoffman Estates Police Department. On February 19, 2016, he met with defendant and advised him of his Miranda rights. Defendant waived his rights and agreed to speak. As part of the booking process, defendant was asked his name, address, phone number, date of birth, social security number, and place of employment. The social security number defendant provided ended with 9423. Defendant also listed his place of employment as Insanity Hair.
¶ 12 Detective Zaba showed defendant his Mercedes-Benz credit application. Defendant acknowledged that the application was filled out in his handwriting and that the signature on the application belonged to him. Detective Zaba asked defendant about the different social security number, and defendant responded that he put a credit profile number (CPN) on the application, not a social security number. He told the detective that he bought the number from a website called Legal Cpn.com, and that CPNs are used by people to build their credit. Detective Zaba also asked defendant about the discrepancy in employment he listed on the application. Defendant stated that he never worked for Aeon Management and got that information online. Regarding the social security card he used at the dealership, defendant responded that he was given the card when he purchased the CPN and understood that the CPN was not a social security number.
¶ 13 After presentation of the State's evidence, defense counsel moved for a directed finding which the trial court denied.
¶ 14 Latoya Williams, defendant's wife, testified for the defense. She explained that a CPN "is something that people obtain to use as alternative credit." She learned of CPNs from a friend who knew defendant and was familiar with his foreclosures and other challenges to his credit. In order to obtain defendant's CPN, she had to fill out an application with his full name, social security number, and a copy of defendant's driver's license. She paid $ 150 for the CPN, which was issued on May 28, 2011. The last four digits of the CPN was 2282. When asked whether she had "any idea that it was * * * someone else's Social Security number," Latoya answered, "Absolutely not."
¶ 15 On cross-examination, Latoya was asked about an e-mail requesting defendant to provide a new address not affiliated with his old credit or with his social security number. She stated that the 201 Lake Street address was defendant's grandmother's address and where defendant resided previously. She stated that he still receives mail at that address, although defendant did not reside at that address when he filled out the Mercedes-Benz application. Although the card defendant was given after purchasing the CPN had "Social Security Administration" written on it, Latoya stated that a CPN number is not a social security number. They were given instructions on how to use the CPN in place of a social security number. Latoya again described the CPN as "alternative" credit.
¶ 16 Defendant testified that he is an entrepreneur with three separate businesses. Presently, he has a company called Insanity Hair which sells imported hair. Another business is Aeon management, which is a property management company he has had for about 12 years. When asked about his statement to police that he "made up" Aeon Management, defendant stated that Detective Zaba misquoted him. He explained to the detective that he had both companies. He listed Aeon Management instead of Insanity Hair on his lease application because he has worked at that company the longest.
¶ 17 Defendant explained that he put down his CPN on the application, rather than his social security number, because he had been using the number "for the last few years just to reestablish my credit." He had been using the number, which ends in 2282, for five years. Defendant testified that he used the CPN to obtain credit cards and purchase vehicles. He was never given an actual card showing the number, but had a picture of the card to use. He stated that he has "excellent credit history with it." When asked whether he had any idea the CPN was the social security number of another person, defendant answered, "No, never." He first learned that it was another person's social security number when he was arrested.
¶ 18 Defendant testified that he was informed by Mercedes-Benz that his credit file was "locked," but that they may be willing to accept his application if he sent a copy of his social security card, W-2s, and bank statements. Defendant told them he didn't want to go through with the lease, but, after speaking with the dealership, he took a snapshot of "the picture of the Social Security card on it" and sent it to them. Defendant also stated that he had put the freeze on his credit because he was...
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People v. Jones
...223 (1984), our supreme court held a defendant may only appeal convictions for which a sentence has been imposed. See People v. Fort , 2019 IL App (1st) 170644, ¶ 37, 436 Ill.Dec. 131, 142 N.E.3d 234 ; People v. Olaska , 2017 IL App (2d) 150567, ¶ 112-15, 419 Ill.Dec. 304, 92 N.E.3d 1013 (f......