The lawyers at Ashbach Law Offices, LLC provide aggressive, strong defense for those charged with Forgery throughout Skagit, Snohomish, King and Whatcom Counties. Our goal is to aggressively protect you, your family and your interests from the prosecution, saving jail time, licenses, occupations and reputations. With offices in Marysville and Mill Creek, Washington, we are available to meet you discuss your case. We help good people in bad situations. Let us help you.
In General
Forgery in Washington is a Class C Felony, punishable by up to five years in jail and/or a $10,000 fine. However, there is no mandatory minimum sentence. Forgery is defined as a person, with the intent to injure or defraud another, who falsely makes, completes or alters a written document. Possessing, using as a true document or offering such false document to another also falls under the Forgery statute.
Written Instrument
A “written instrument” means (a) any paper, document or other instrument containing written or printed matter or its equivalent; or (b) any access device, token, stamp, seal, badge, trademark or other evidence or symbol of value, right, privilege or identification.
Falsely Alter
To “falsely alter” a written instrument means to change, without authorization by anyone entitled to grant it, a written instrument, whether complete or incomplete, by means of erasure, obliteration, deletion, insertion of new matter, transposition of matter or in any other manner.
Falsely Complete
To “falsely complete” means to transform an incomplete written instrument into a complete one by adding or inserting matter, without the authority of anyone entitled to grant it.
Falsely Make
To “falsely make” means to make or draw a complete or incomplete written instrument which purports to be authentic, but which is not authentic either because the ostensible maker is fictitious or because, if real, he or she did not authorize the making or drawing thereof.
The Forgery Statute, RCW 9A.60.020, states as follows:
- (1) A person is guilty of forgery if, with intent to injure or defraud:
- (a) He falsely makes, completes, or alters a written instrument or,
- (b) He possesses, utters, offers, disposes of, or puts off as true a written instrument which he knows to be forged.
- (2) In a proceeding under this section that is related to an identity theft under RCW 9.35.020, the crime will be considered to have been committed in any locality
where the person whose means of identification or financial information was appropriated resides, or in which any part of the offense took place, regardless of whether the defendant was ever actually in that locality.
Ashbach Law Offices, LLC, aggressively represents clients throughout the Washington I-5 corridor, covering Skagit, Snohomish, King and Whatcom Counties. Regular courts of practice include, but are not limited to, Anacortes, Arlington, Bellevue, Bellingham, Blaine, Burlington, Edmonds, Everett, Issaquah, Lynnwood, Marysville, Monroe, Mount Vernon, Mountlake Terrance, Redmond, Seattle, Sedro Woolley and Shoreline.