Fraudulent Use of a Credit Card in Alabama: Penalties and Defenses

The fraudulent use of a credit card in Alabama is a Class D felony under Alabama Code Section 13A-9-14, no matter how small the transaction. A single unauthorized $20 purchase carries the same classification as one worth thousands. Conviction can bring one to five years in prison, a fine of up to $7,500 (or double the gain or loss, whichever is greater), and court-ordered restitution to the victim.¹²³

What Counts as Fraudulent Use

Section 13A-9-14 covers two separate offenses in one statute. The first is illegal possession: knowingly taking or exercising control over a credit or debit card without the owner’s consent. The second is fraudulent use: using, attempting to use, or letting someone else use a card to obtain property, services, or anything of value while knowing the card is stolen, revoked, cancelled, or otherwise unauthorized.¹

The statute’s definition of “credit card” is wide. It reaches traditional credit cards, debit cards, bank service cards, check guarantee cards, welfare cards, EBT cards, telecommunications cards, and even standalone account numbers. If the instrument or number can be used to obtain money, goods, or services on credit or through an automated banking device, it’s covered.¹

One carve-out matters. The statute specifically excludes “the mere use by the original issuee of a credit card or debit card which has expired.”¹ Using your own expired card does not, by itself, violate this law. The issuer may still treat the transaction as unauthorized, and other statutes may apply, but Section 13A-9-14 does not reach that conduct.

Penalties

Both offenses in the statute are Class D felonies under Section 13A-9-14(e), with no dollar-amount threshold that would knock the charge down to a misdemeanor.¹ A Class D felony carries a sentence of one year and one day up to five years in prison.² The fine can run up to $7,500, or up to double the defendant’s gain or the victim’s loss, whichever is greater.³

Judges weigh criminal history, the total dollar amount, and the number of victims when sentencing within those ranges. First-time offenders may land at the lower end or receive probation. A prior fraud record pushes the sentence substantially higher. Courts can also order restitution under Alabama’s Restitution to Victims of Crimes provisions in Title 15, Chapter 18, Article 4A, requiring the defendant to repay actual financial losses.

Charges That Usually Come With It

Credit card fraud rarely appears alone on a charging document. Prosecutors routinely add related counts based on how the card was obtained and used, and each count carries its own penalties.

Theft of a Credit Card

Physically stealing a credit or debit card is theft of property in the third degree under Alabama Code Section 13A-8-4.1, regardless of the card’s monetary value. That’s also a Class D felony. Someone who steals a card and then uses it can face two separate felony counts for the same episode.⁴

Identity Theft

When the fraud involves using another person’s identifying information to obtain a card or make purchases, Alabama’s identity theft statute enters the picture. Under Section 13A-8-192, using someone’s personal information without authorization and with intent to defraud is a Class B felony, carrying two to twenty years in prison. That’s far more serious than the Section 13A-9-14 charge itself.⁵ The identity theft count typically surfaces when the card was obtained through phishing, a data breach, or stolen mail.

When Federal Charges Enter the Picture

Federal prosecutors can take over or add their own case when fraud crosses state lines, runs through interstate commerce, or hits certain dollar thresholds. Under 15 U.S.C. Section 1644, fraudulent credit card use becomes a federal crime once the value of what’s obtained reaches $1,000 or more within any one-year period. For stolen transportation tickets, the threshold is $500.⁶

Federal penalties reach up to $10,000 in fines and up to ten years in federal prison.⁶ State and federal charges can both proceed for the same conduct under the dual sovereignty doctrine. Large-scale operations, skimming rings, and multi-state schemes are the cases most likely to attract federal attention.

How Long Prosecutors Have to File

Alabama generally gives prosecutors five years to file felony charges. Because fraudulent use of a credit card is a Class D felony, the state has five years from the date of the offense to bring the case. The clock starts when the fraudulent transaction occurs, not when the victim or the bank discovers it. If the window closes with no charges filed, the prosecution is time-barred.

Defenses That Work on This Charge

The prosecution must prove the defendant knew the card was unauthorized at the time of use. That knowledge element is where most defenses live. A defendant who genuinely believed they had the cardholder’s permission lacks the fraudulent intent the statute requires. Text messages, emails, and a history of shared card use between the defendant and the cardholder can carry that argument.

Mistaken identity is another common line, especially in online transactions and stolen-number cases. When card data is used remotely, the actual user could be anyone with access to the number. Surveillance footage may show a different person at the register, and IP evidence loses force when a network is shared.

Constitutional challenges also come up. If investigators obtained evidence through a search or seizure that violated the Fourth Amendment, a motion to suppress can keep that evidence out. Excluded evidence can weaken the case enough to force a dismissal or a better plea. This issue tends to arise around phone records, vehicle searches, and seized computers.

Many of these cases do not go to trial. Prosecutors may offer a plea to a lesser charge or a lighter sentence, particularly when a defendant can provide information about co-conspirators in a larger scheme. Some Alabama counties also run pre-trial diversion programs that let eligible first-time offenders avoid a conviction by completing program requirements, though eligibility and terms vary by judicial circuit and defendants typically must apply within 30 days of arraignment.

What a Conviction Costs After the Sentence

The prison term and fine are the opening cost. A Class D felony conviction creates problems that outlast the sentence. Alabama restricts voting rights for people convicted of felonies involving moral turpitude, and fraud offenses generally sit in that category. Federal and state law also bar felons from possessing firearms in many circumstances.

Professional licensing boards in nursing, real estate, education, and cosmetology routinely deny or revoke licenses based on felony fraud convictions. Background checks surface the felony to employers, and finance, healthcare, and government positions often treat a fraud conviction as an automatic disqualifier. Housing applications, loans, and even volunteer roles get harder.

Alabama does allow expungement of certain criminal records under Code Section 15-27, but the eligibility rules are specific and not every felony qualifies. Anyone convicted under Section 13A-9-14 should ask an attorney whether, and when, expungement is realistic in their case.

1
Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 13A-9-14 – Illegal Possession or Fraudulent Use of Credit Card or Debit Card
2
Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 13A-5-6 – Sentences of Imprisonment for Felonies
3
Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 13A-5-11 – Fines for Felonies
4
Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 13A-8-4.1 – Theft of Property in the Third Degree – Pickpocketing, Theft of a Credit or Debit Card
5
Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 13A-8-192 – Identity Theft
6
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1644 – Fraudulent Use of Credit Cards Penalties