Petty Theft: A Prior Theft Offense Can Be Detrimental

 Orange County criminal defense lawyers  

 

Theft is defined by Section 484 of the California Penal Code. It states, in relevant part, “every person who shall feloniously steal, take, carry away, lead, or drive away the personal property of another, or who shall fraudulently appropriate property which has been entrusted to him or her, or who shall knowingly and designedly, by any false or fraudulent representation or pretense, defraud any other person of money, labor or real or personal property, or who causes or procures others to report falsely of his or her wealth or mercantile character by thus imposing upon any person, obtains credit and thereby fraudulently gets or obtains possession of money, or property or obtains the labor of service of another, is guilty of theft.” This definition of theft, long and contorted even by the standards of an Orange County criminal defense attorney, covers just about every way that most thefts occur.

 

Grand theft is, generally, theft where the value of that which is taken exceeds $950.00, where farm crops are stolen and the value exceeds $250.00, where the property is taken from the person of another, where the property taken is a farm animal, whether dead or alive, or where the property taken is a firearm or an automobile, regardless of its value. criminal defense lawyers in Orange County know that grand theft is a “wobbler”, which means it can be charged as a misdemeanor or a felony and punished by up to a year in the county jail or by up to three years in the state prison. Petty theft includes theft of goods or services with a value of $950.00 or less. Petty theft charges usually arise out of shoplifting. Although, if the DA can show an intent to steal by the person BEFORE they entered the store, the DA will also charge the defendant with burglary. Petty theft is a misdemeanor and is punishable by up to six months in the county jail and a fine of up to $1,000.00.

 

Where a person is charged with petty theft and the value of the goods or services taken is below $50.00, the person charged with petty theft may be able to get the charge reduced to an infraction. However, your criminal defense attorney in Orange County cannot get this reduction if you have ANY other previous theft convictions on your record. Moreover, this reduction is discretionary and the District Attorney is not required to reduce the charge to an infraction. That’s why it is important for your theft lawyer to convince the DA to reduce the charge based on your record, your personal factors, and the facts of your case.

 

While petty theft is generally a misdemeanor punishable by a fine and/or up to six months of jail time, there is a rather draconian exception where the defendant has a prior theft offense. Under Penal Code Section 666, a petty theft offense becomes a wobbler, punishable as a misdemeanor by up to a year in jail or punishable as a felony by up to three years in the state prison if the defendant has a qualifying prior conviction. So, what does it take for a petty theft charge to be bumped up to a felony under this section? Well, the list is pretty complicated, even for an experienced ORANGE COUNTY CRIMINAL DEFENSE LAWYER. But basically, if the defendant has any of the following prior convictions the enhanced punishment applies:

 

·        A person with three or more prior theft convictions, including; petty theft, grand theft, theft from an elder, auto theft, burglary, carjacking, robbery, or felony receiving stolen property AND who served any jail or prison time on the prior offenses; or

 

·        A registered sex offender or a person with a prior “strike” offense with a single prior conviction for a theft offense including petty theft, grand theft, elder theft, auto theft, burglary, carjacking robbery, felony receiving stolen property AND the person served some jail or prison time for the prior theft offense.

 

A “Strike” offense is a serious or violent crime as defined in Penal Code Sections 1192.7(c) and 667.5(c). This is a very long list and includes crimes such as first-degree burglary, robbery, rape, arson, mayhem, murder, carjacking, and inflicting great bodily injury on another.

 

A person in either of the above categories who is convicted of petty theft, even a simple shoplifting, can be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for up to three years.

 

If you are facing charges for petty theft, grand theft or any other theft crimes, call The Law Offices of EJ Stopyro at (949) 559-5500 for a free and confidential telephonic consultation with an experienced Orange County theft attorney. You can also visit our website at www.ejesquire.com. We have meeting offices throughout Orange County but our main office is located at 32072 Camino Capistrano, 2^nd floor, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675.