69.24 Penalties.

(1) Any person who does any of the following is guilty of a Class I felony:

(a) Other than as authorized under ss. 69.21 (2) (d) and 69.30 (3), prepares or issues any paper or film which purports to be, or carries the appearance of, an original or a copy of a vital record, certified or uncertified, except as provided under this subchapter or s. 610.50 and except for any hospital which issues any written announcement of the birth of a person to the parents of the person if the announcement contains plain notice that the announcement is not for official use.

(b) Willfully and knowingly makes any false statement in a birth or death record under s. 69.09, 69.10, 69.14 or 69.18, in an application for an amendment to a birth or death record under s. 69.11 or 69.12 or in a request for a certified copy of a birth record under s. 69.21.

(c) Willfully and knowingly supplies any false information with the intent that the information be used in the preparation of a birth or death record or the amendment of a birth or death record.

(d) Counterfeits or, without authorization, makes, alters or amends any birth or death record required by this subchapter or a certified copy of such record.

(e) Mutilates or destroys an original birth or death record filed under this subchapter.

(f) Willfully and knowingly obtains, possesses, uses, sells, furnishes or attempts to obtain, possess, use, sell or furnish to any person for any purpose of deception, any vital record or certified copy of a vital record which is counterfeited, altered or amended or false in part or in whole or which is related to the birth, death, marriage, divorce, domestic partnership, or termination of a domestic partnership of another person, whether living or dead.

(g) Illegally possesses any vital record required under this subchapter with knowledge that the vital record has been illegally obtained.

(h) As a public officer or public employee, furnishes or processes a birth or death record or a certified copy of a birth or death record with the knowledge or intention that the record or copy will be used for the purpose of deception.

(2) Any person who does any of the following shall be fined not more than $1,000 or imprisoned not more than 90 days or both:

(a) Willfully and knowingly commits any of the actions prohibited under sub. (1) in relation to records of marriage, divorce, declaration of domestic partnership, or termination of domestic partnership.

(b) Willfully and knowingly refuses to provide information required under this subchapter for any part of a birth record which is not designated as the part for statistical or medical and statistical use or for a death record.

(c) Willfully and knowingly effects final disposition of a corpse without complying with s. 69.18 (3) (b).

(d) Willfully and knowingly neglects or violates or refuses to perform any requirement under this subchapter.

History: 1985 a. 315; 1987 a. 247; 1987 a. 403 s. 256; 1997 a. 210, 283; 2001 a. 16, 109; 2009 a. 28; 2015 a. 142; 2017 a. 334.

A bank, its employees, and agents violate this section when copying a certified copy of a vital record for use by the Federal Reserve Bank. 78 Atty. Gen. 232.