Old Copy of LTCH botched? Way to fix it.

[IndyBeerman]

Back in Dec. of 06 when I got my lifetime license I decided to immediately laminate it after signing it.

Well this was my first time using the laminate machine at work and it promptly ate it, but I was able to get it out, take it home and straighten it out with a combination of blow dryer, heat gun and a mini butane torch all while stretching it while it was in a wood vise.

While it was fully readable (no burning or scorching to it), it did have a major case of wrinkling to it, even though it was flat.

Well today I finally got feed up with it and decided to use my flatbed scanner and photo editing skills to rebuild it and make a lifetime digital image and a couple of pages with 8 copies on each page as backup's.

After a tedious 45 minute session of turning the background to white and filling in the letters to make them full and complete and remove all trace of any wrinkles, I now have 3 pages with 8 copies on each one so I can have copies in more than one place. Now all I have to do is use the laminate machine the right way!

So do not feel all is lost if you got your license and failed to make copies, all you need is a flatbed scanned and a decent photo program and ta-da you got more than enough to go around for a long time!

 

[Bill of Rights]

Or you can pay $20 to the state and get a copy legally, which you can then photocopy and laminate. Your choice which one to do.

Blessings,
Bill

 

[hountzmj]

I'm going to go with Bill of Rights on this one.

You would be better off getting a new copy from the state.

What I did was sign the copy from my safe. Then I made the copies I wanted and laminated them. The original (unlaminated) lives in my safe at home.

 

[IndyBeerman]

Or you can pay $20 to the state and get a copy legally, which you can then photocopy and laminate. Your choice which one to do.

Blessings,
Bill

A copy is a copy, no matter how you look at it. After all this is not something that I edited, retyped and printed, it is the original that this is created from. Plus it saved me about $19.95 and only 45 minutes of my time.

It is an exact scan of the original, after touching up wrinkle spots from the scan from the botched laminate and removing the signature and printing on the same color pink paper it looks just as perfect as the day it arrived in the mail.

You would be better off getting a new copy from the state.

I compared the two side my side and can not tell a difference, plus it saved me $$$'s and the forever wait on the replacement.

 

[printcraft]

This has been discussed to death. IndyBeerman is not trying to
"forge" a document. Simply trying to make sure he has a
readable item.

It is just a number, the information is on file with the state.
Otherwise how would one go about applying for a duplicate without
the appropriate info/number?

 

[IndyBeerman]

This has been discussed to death. IndyBeerman is not trying to "forge" a document. Simply trying to make sure he has a
readable item.

Exactly, when you make a copy of something the copier has to scan the image B4 printing. The only difference is that I'm saving the scan, edited out the blemishes and pasting and copying it 8 times on pink paper for multiple legal copies.

 

[Bill of Rights]

This has been discussed to death. IndyBeerman is not trying to
"forge" a document. Simply trying to make sure he has a
readable item.

It is just a number, the information is on file with the state.
Otherwise how would one go about applying for a duplicate without
the appropriate info/number?

The idea of copying LTCH has indeed been discussed at length. The idea of editing that copy, not so much.
I am not saying he's trying to forge anything. It's not the scanning that I think causes any problem, it's the editing and removal of this and making legible of that and so forth. By this logic, I could simply create a graphic on my computer, and as long as I had the correct info (including the state number), it would be perfectly fine. Where is the line between cleaning up a scan and making a new graphic entirely? At what point does just cleaning something up become more than that?

At what point does the state make the differentiation? Leaving aside the issue of permits/licenses even being Constitutional, that, I think, is the central question.

Blessings,
Bill

 

[Srtsi4wd]

In my humble opinion, the LTCH is not a State issued form of ID it is a standard form for the presentation of information. It is so that any officer or agent in the state is going to be looking at the same form every time it is presented.
Its not used for anything other than providing LEO's the file number to check to confirm your status as a "proper person." Its given in a standard format to make this easier on them.
If it had markings on it like the driver license does, ie holograms, inlaid foil, angled overlays and watermarks, and was accepted as proof of who you are, then yes copying would be forgery.
I think that the fee for a replacement copy is to cover the expense of rechecking your status when you request a new copy. They are not going to just print one off and mail it. What is the reason you lost it is because it was confiscated after arrest or conviction of a crime? They recheck your status and send out the form again.
IANAL. Your mileage may vary.

 

[g194life]

The BMV and USPS considered mine as a verfiying 2nd form of id. So if the place that handles most of our legal Ids (ie drivers licenes, passport) consider it to be then I suppose that says alot. Just a thought.

 

[IndyBeerman]

In my humble opinion, the LTCH is not a State issued form of ID it is a standard form for the presentation of information. It is so that any officer or agent in the state is going to be looking at the same form every time it is presented.

It is a form of state issued ID, it's just not a LEGAL form of ID, if it was considered a legal Indiana ID I think it would have the Indiana State seal on it.

The BMV and USPS considered mine as a verfiying 2nd form of id. So if the place that handles most of our legal Ids (ie drivers licenes, passport) consider it to be then I suppose that says alot. Just a thought.

Key word is highlighted in red, a second form of ID can also be considered a utility bill with a valid picture state ID.

 

[Srtsi4wd]

It is a form of state issued ID, it's just not a LEGAL form of ID, if it was considered a legal Indiana ID I think it would have the Indiana State seal on it.

It doesn't identify you, it simply provides the your license record number.
It's a supporting document to your identity, like a utility bill or pay stub.
I would never carry my LTCH and nothing else. It has no weight to prove who I am, only to show that the named person on the form was at the time of issuance a "proper person." I'll need my State issued ID to prove I am the named person on the form. JMHO + IANAL