ID Card Law

[Tex 1]

I know everyone would like to have an accurate uniform. For some people that includes ID cards. However, it is against federal law to copy, reproduce, or describe a military ID card. This includes the actual ID card, line badge, or any other official credential.

 

The SGC badge is not an official government-issued credential so you are free to reproduce and use it however you like.

 

I really don't want to dissuade anyone from doing as accurate a costume as possible, I just wanted to let people know the law, and possibly avoid somebody being pissy at a con.

 

One time I did a costume from the Harrison Ford movie Hanover Street. It was a World War II lieutenants uniform. An ROTC Cadet Commander fronted me for quote unquote impersonating an officer. The cadet Commander was wrong, but he still tried to give me grief for it. So people are watching.

[Eightball 86]

On 1/13/2020 at 5:09 PM, Tex said:

I know everyone would like to have an accurate uniform. For some people that includes ID cards. However, it is against federal law to copy, reproduce, or describe a military ID card. This includes the actual ID card, line badge, or any other official credential.

 

The SGC badge is not an official government-issued credential so you are free to reproduce and use it however you like.

 

I really don't want to dissuade anyone from doing as accurate a costume as possible, I just wanted to let people know the law, and possibly avoid somebody being pissy at a con.

 

One time I did a costume from the Harrison Ford movie Hanover Street. It was a World War II lieutenants uniform. An ROTC Cadet Commander fronted me for quote unquote impersonating an officer. The cadet Commander was wrong, but he still tried to give me grief for it. So people are watching.

 I would have told him where to go and stick his head where the sun does not shine!

[Eric Voiers 171]

Sorry for the fuzzy but this is one I made several years ago from a template I found on-line and completed in Picture it. Funny thing is I did a presentation on Stolen Valor a few years ago to the DAR and they had the Air Force JrROTC there and the Lt. Col in charge, after I showed the card around trying to explain the difference between the law and just faking/pretending, said to me, " I was stationed at Cheyenne Mountain and I gotta tell ya, you fooled me." Did he say I was impersonating? NAY I SAY.

The question is one of intent and malice. Eightball is right, that cadet "commander" was full of SHIAT and greener than grass. IF you are not trying to gain favor, access or information with a fake card, go for it because you are cosplaying and it is part of the persona.

[Riceball 150]

On 1/19/2020 at 5:47 PM, Eric Voiers said:

Sorry for the fuzzy but this is one I made several years ago from a template I found on-line and completed in Picture it. Funny thing is I did a presentation on Stolen Valor a few years ago to the DAR and they had the Air Force JrROTC there and the Lt. Col in charge, after I showed the card around trying to explain the difference between the law and just faking/pretending, said to me, " I was stationed at Cheyenne Mountain and I gotta tell ya, you fooled me." Did he say I was impersonating? NAY I SAY.

The question is one of intent and malice. Eightball is right, that cadet "commander" was full of SHIAT and greener than grass. IF you are not trying to gain favor, access or information with a fake card, go for it because you are cosplaying and it is part of the persona.

 

Exactly. What a lot of people say about Hollywood deliberately getting things wrong with military uniforms (and police as well) because it's illegal to get it 100% accurate because that would be impersonating someone in the military or a cop is total BS. They get it wrong because they don't have a consultant or their consultant is no good. Simply dressing up as military or police for a con, Halloween, or TV show/movie/play is not considered impersonation. Impersonating X is about trying to convince people that you're really X when you're not; this could be for gaining personal favors, discounts at a store or restaurant, to (illegally) gain access to somewhere a regular civilian is not allowed, and so on. Impersonation is about much more than simply playing dress up,

[Eric Voiers 171]

With that in mind, wanna see my Blade Runner I.D.? HAHA!!

 

[Tex 1]

The law says nothing about costuming or cosplaying. It is illegal to copy, create a facsimile, describe, render in any format, or Draw, any government issued ID card. Crime isn't in the purpose the crime is in the creating.

[Dr Rodnay 62]

On 4/7/2020 at 5:09 AM, Tex said:

The law says nothing about costuming or cosplaying. It is illegal to copy, create a facsimile, describe, render in any format, or Draw, any government issued ID card. Crime isn't in the purpose the crime is in the creating.

 

...which is obviously not in our intentions ass long as it is only for costume and entertainment sake.

That's why, even if we are hard-core costumers down for accuracy, it's better to introduce smaller or bigger typos, errors or moddifications to the design of replica cards to specifiy they're not real and not intended to pretend being such 😉

[SG Merc 67]

Good information. For Stargate costuming the IDs used on the show are fictional.

[Eric Voiers 171]

Well, I have yet to run into I.D. Card police at these cons. If I did I think we would have a discussion about agendas, but I remember once asking Kinkos to make me a color copy of my Stargate file cover and they said they could not because it had U.S. Air Force on it. My Stargate I.D. card say's NOTHING with U.S. government or Air Force on it. 

[Omegacron 1]

On 4/6/2020 at 10:09 PM, Tex said:

The law says nothing about costuming or cosplaying. It is illegal to copy, create a facsimile, describe, render in any format, or Draw, any government issued ID card. Crime isn't in the purpose the crime is in the creating.

I'm no expert, but I'm pretty sure that law is referring to EXISTING cards. In other words, you cannot copy or otherwise recreate an actual ID card. And even if it refers to creating a custom card, remember that we're not copying or reproducing an official ID card... we're copying or reproducing a prop from a TV show. There's a big difference.