It is definitely strange if I walk up to someone and claim to be a lawyer for their employer who needs their badge. Is the employer the victim of identity theft? Doesn’t seem convincing to me.
No, because scamming people is a crime, not just a civil dispute, so the police are involved. It's like if someone got drunk and then crashed into you. You could certainly go after the driver for damages (civil), but the police can independently go after the driver criminally (drunk/reckless driving).
>Shouldn't authorities have to prove that this random person did something wrong?
They do, but there's a gap between when someone's arrested and when the trial happens, and in that time the person can detailed, have to post bail, lose their job, etc. When it does go to trial, I suspect even an overworked public defender would be able to raise reasonable doubt for her to get free, but as the saying goes, "you can beat the rap but not the ride".
This is pretty clearly identity theft, but to admit it would throw egg on somebody's face.
the burden of proof is on the prosecutor, but the defendant stands a better chance by presenting evidence that it wasn't her.