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HOME ! ARCHIVES ! UNDERS IDENTIFY WAYS TO FAKE-OUT THE LEGAL SYSTEM
ARCHIVES
Unders identify ways to fake-out
the legal system
BY ARCHIVES OCTOBER 22, 2013
By Reis Thebault, Campus Editor
Part 1 of Fake It Till You Make It
Miami University sophomore *Jerry Graham walks down High Street, stopping to let his glassy
eyes linger on The Woods bar. Bombastic bass leaks out and drifts down the street, creating the
soundtrack for a typical Saturday night out.
As he approaches, two lines confront Graham. He condently chooses the left and presents his
drivers license to a burly bouncer who nods, returns the ID and sends him through to a second
bouncer who outts his right arm with a bright blue wristband.
Graham is in.
What those two bouncers do not realize is that Grahams Illinois drivers license, listing his birth
year 1991, is off by two years. The 19-year-old just used a fake ID.
Researchers working with the University of Missouri and the Midwest Alcoholism Research
Center (MARC) found in a study published in 2010 that Graham is far from alone. Of the 1098
college students surveyed, 21 percent admitted to having a fake ID of some kind. Furthermore,
the study read that one in three of those students are caught using them.
Police ofcers and bar bouncers, as well as students, report a drastic improvement in the
authenticity of fake drivers licenses.
DATA TAKEN FROM A 2010 STUDY BY THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AND THE
MIDWEST ALCOHOLISM RESEARCH CENTER (JAKE BRENNAN | THE MIAMI STUDENT)
Miami Universitys prominent bar scene compels underage students to look past the
consequences of being caught with a fake ID. At most bars Uptown, under 21-year-olds are
charged a $5 cover fee, while those 21-and-up get in for free.
It saves time and money, Graham said. I looked at [getting a fake ID] as an investment and I
thought to myself, $70 up front [for the ID] would save me $5 every time I go out, so that would
pay itself off really quickly. And its more convenient and allows you to buy alcohol without
having to ask someone else to do it for you.
To Graham, the risk-reward ratio tips heavily in his favor.
I use it every time I go out, so three times a week on average, Graham said. It works every
time.
Getting Them
The same survey, Methods of fake ID obtainment and use in underage college students breaks
down how those 230 underage students obtained their fake IDs.
According to the survey, only 36 percent of students buy their fake ID, while the rest get them
from a relative or friend. The difference is that a purchased ID, typically from a website or some
other dealer, is not a valid license. A relatives or friends old ID is valid and comes complete
with a valid license number that matches the licenses information, something that not even the
best fake IDs can accomplish.
Graham chose to have a fake ID made, saying that one with his actual picture would be more
effective at the bars.
Sergeant Gregory Moore of Oxford Police Department (OPD) said nding a way to obtain a fake
ID is not difcult.
Just like being 19 years old and trying to get yourself a 30-pack of Natty Light, its just as easy
nowadays to get a fake ID, Moore said. If you dont know somebody, you probably know
somebody who knows somebody.
Graham followed that exact path to obtain his fake ID.
I got it from a friend of a friend who goes to [Ohio University], Graham said. I never met him
before and I took a pretty big risk. I sent money in a birthday card to his dorm address, and I paid
$70 for one ID and had to provide my picture and information and he shipped it to me.
The Miami University Police Department (MUPD) works with the Department of Homeland
Security to monitor packages coming to and leaving the Campus, according to MUPD Detective
Walt Schneider who works with Homeland Security to limit fake ID use.
Homeland Security is constantly monitoring those things, Schneider said. I had one package
that had 28 IDs in it and we ended up arresting the kid that ordered them.
ID Chief, a foreign website, was a popular source for these shipped IDs.
ID Chief is based out of China and its an American citizen thats running the company and hes
made millions of dollars selling IDs and getting people arrested, Schneider said.
The website, however, is no longer active, forcing underage students to seek other ID
manufacturers as Graham has.
Using Them
The same survey, Methods of fake ID obtainment and use in underage college students depicts
the ways in which the 21 percent of students use their fake IDs. According to the same study, 86
percent of students use their IDs to get into bars, raising the question of whether or not the
doormen or bouncers are doing their jobs.
Moore acknowledged that there are many rogue doormen who let in friends and ladies no matter
what they present. He said he sympathizes with the ones who are committed to keeping fake IDs
out because many look so realistic.
I cant necessarily fault the doormen, the few who are actually trying to do a good job, Moore
said. I cant really fault them.
*Junior Derek Johnson spent over a year working as crowd control and as a doorman for The
Woods.
Basically, were not really trained on what fake IDs look like versus the real ones, Johnson
said. We use common sense. If youre not sure, then you let it go, but if its obviously fake then
we dont let them in.
Johnson said the more a bouncer works the door, the more familiar he becomes with the nuances
of each states ID, such as specic reective holograms.
If there is a hologram out of place or if it looks nothing like the IDs of that state that we have
seen, we know its fake, Johnson said.
However, Lt. Stephen VanWinkle of the MUPD pointed out that nding each fake IDs aw still
may not stop every underage student from entering the establishment.
It can be a real ID that looks like you from a family member or a cousin or a sorority or
fraternity member or just someone that you know thats passed down their ID to you and its a
real ID, VanWinkle said.
Johnson is aware of the volume of students, just like Graham, who continue to get away with
using false identication.
Tons of people, hundreds of kids, Johnson said. A lot of them are hard to identify, not just at
[The Wood's] but at bars across the campus.
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