Credit card fraud can take many different forms, and can even occur by accident. Penalties for being convicted of credit card fraud are serious, and can result in a misdemeanor or felony charge. Four common types of credit card fraud allegations include:

1) Failure to Obtain Consent of Cardholder

A cardholder must authorize use of the card by another person. This authorization can be either written or verbal. A cardholder can also designate an authorized user for their card, by including their name on the credit card account. Once the cardholder has formally authorized someone to use their credit card, the owner is responsible for any charges the authorized user incurs.

Mass shootings occur with alarming regularity in the United States, and the most recent incident, in which a gunman opened fire on a crowd in Las Vegas on October 1, 2017, resulted in 58 deaths and 546 injuries. In the aftermath of this tragedy, debate about gun laws and gun control has resumed, and politicians and pundits have brought up a familiar talking point, stating that the city of Chicago has strict gun laws, but also a high rate of homicides. But while this is something that is often asserted, is it actually true?

In order to clear up confusion about this issue and provide some context about the weapons charges people may face, here is some information about the laws concerning gun ownership in Chicago and the state of Illinois:

Weapons Licenses

Being arrested and charged with a crime will have major, long-lasting effects on anyone’s life. When someone enters the criminal justice system, their criminal record can follow them for the rest of their life. In Illinois, nearly 50 percent of ex-offenders end up back in prison within three years due to their inability to find work.

After someone has been convicted of criminal charges and served their sentence, they may be able to have their criminal record sealed, which will improve their ability to find jobs, education, and housing. Unfortunately, the process of sealing these records is often difficult, but the state of Illinois is working to implement criminal justice reforms to address this issue.

New Illinois Criminal Justice Laws

On August 11, 2017, Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner signed a new law eliminating the statute of limitations for felony sexual assault and sexual abuse crime against children. This law went into effect immediately, and officials praised the law, stating that will make it easier to prosecute these crimes.

Changes under the New Law

Prior to the passage of this law, Illinois statutes required sexual offenses against children to be reported and prosecuted within 20 years of the child’s 18th birthday. The new law eliminates that statute of limitations altogether, and it applies to any future crimes or existing crimes for which the statute of limitations had not yet expired. Following this change, 37 states and the federal government have removed the statute of limitations for some or all sex crimes against children.

Anyone who has been arrested on criminal charges faces a great deal of financial hardship, including bail, court fees, fines, attorney’s fees, and the possible loss of income. But what many people do not know is that when they are arrested, police can seize their money or property if they believe that it was used to commit a crime. This is known as civil asset forfeiture.

While civil asset forfeiture is meant to provide law enforcement with tools to disrupt the activities of large scale criminal organizations, the practice has come under fire in recent years due to its increased use in a wide variety of criminal cases. Organizations such as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) have argued that law enforcement officials disproportionately target lower-income individuals who do not have the resources to prove their innocence and reclaim their property.

These claims are backed up by studies from journalistic organizations such as Reason and the Chicago Reader, who analyzed data about civil forfeitures in Cook County. These studies showed that low-income neighborhoods in Chicago’s south side and west side were disproportionately targeted, especially for seizures of amounts less than $100.