Stolen identity victim speaks out in report from Los Angeles
William Woods, who had his identity stolen by a Hartford, Wisconsin, man 36 years ago and was institutionalized for nearly two years after pleading his case that authorities had the wrong guy, is considering a lawsuit against the city of Los Angeles, according to a report.
Last week, an Iowa federal court case made headlines around the country and as details emerged, it became clear that the defendant in the case had been living in Wisconsin for the last 15 years.
Matthew David Keirans, 58, has been using the name William Donald Woods since he stole it and a Social Security number from the real Woods while the two worked at a hot dog cart in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in 1988.
Keirans went on to use Woods’ identity in “every aspect of his life,” prosecutors said, even obtaining a six-figure job at an Iowa hospital.
The real Woods was arrested after he visited a bank in Los Angeles and reported recent uses of credit in his name to the manager, but failed to answer security questions on the account, so the manager called the Los Angeles Police Department. The arrest led to Woods being charged, convicted, incarcerated, placed in a psychiatric facility, and even prescribed medication, all in Keirans’ name. Keirans actively aided authorities with the prosecution by sending phony identification documents.
After spending 575 days institutionalized, Woods was told by a California court to go by “Matthew Keirans” in the future.
In a recent interview with The Los Angeles Times, Woods said he’s considering filing a lawsuit against the city of Los Angeles for the years he spent in incarcerated, accused of a crime he did not commit.
“They should pay for every day I had to stay there,” the 55-year-old said. “It isn’t right to be putting me in jail for nothing.”
Woods told The Times that his wallet went missing while working the hotdog cart and said he confronted Keirans. “I put my fist in his face, and he decided to hand me back my wallet,” said Woods, although he didn’t hit Keirans.
Woods said he looked inside the wallet and his Social Security card and birth certificate were still inside. “I didn’t think anything of it,” he said. “I didn’t think he was actually going to do anything.”
Keirans would go on to marry his wife in 1994 and have a son and eventually move to Wisconsin about 15 years ago. Woods, on the other hand, has struggled.
After leaving New Mexico, Woods said he worked as a day laborer in El Paso, Texas, then got a job at a laundromat in Las Vegas. Eventually, he moved to Southern California. He worked a tech job in San Diego for several years before moving to Santa Monica in 2009.
He stayed in hotels and motels and made a living selling gemstones, gold scraps or other items he found on the street in downtown Los Angeles. On Aug. 20, 2019, he entered the bank branch.
At his criminal court proceedings Woods would continue to state he wasn’t the real Keirans but the judge demanded he stopped and eventually Woods’ public defender told the judge her client wasn’t competent to stand trial, according to The Times. Woods demanded to speak to the FBI and the judge told him, “You can give them a call.”
Keirans continued to ask for updates from prosecutors and provide false statements to authorities until January 2023, when Woods contacted Keirans’ employer — the University of Iowa Hospital — unraveling the whole scheme.
He insists that LAPD officers and the bank manager conspired to put him in jail on purpose. An LAPD spokesperson told The Times that there was an investigation but “additional information regarding this case is not currently available.”
Keirans pleaded guilty to two counts related to the scheme earlier this month. He will be sentenced by U.S. District Court Chief Judge C.J. Williams at a future date that hasn’t been determined by the court. He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of two years in prison and a possible maximum sentence of 32 years in prison and a $1.25 million fine.
As for Woods, The Times said he gave a “rambling phone interview.” He moved to Albuquerque and lived in a hotel, but is currently staying in a friend’s van in El Paso, Texas. Woods said he doesn’t know yet what he’ll be doing for work.
“What’s next for me?” he asked. “I guess I have to regain all my stuff back and just rebuild what I was.”