Penal Code § 451 PC – California “Arson” Laws

Under California Penal Code § 451 PC, “a person is guilty of arson when he or she willfully and maliciously sets fire to or burns or causes to be burned or who aids, counsels, or procures the burning of, any structure, forest land, or property.”

A conviction is a felony punishable by a sentence of up to 9 years in jail or state prison.

Police will sometimes write this citation as

• 451 PC or
• 451 CPC

as abbreviations for the California Penal Code.

Note that this code section is one of two California arson laws. The other is Penal Code 452 PC, “reckless burning.”

Examples of Arson

• setting fire to someone else’s car as an act of revenge
• causing a forest fire by intentionally throwing a lit cigarette into dry grass and branches (despite posted signs warning not to do so)
• setting fire to a restaurant in order to collect insurance policy money (insurance fraud) for the value of the property damage

Common Defenses to Arson

A defendant can use a legal defense to challenge an arson charge. A few common defenses are:

• no willful act,
• fire not started by arson, and/or
• no intent to defraud (for arson of personal property).

Penalties for Arson in California

The crime of arson is charged as a felony. This is opposed to a misdemeanor or an infraction.

The maximum punishment for the offense is a state prison term of up to nine years.

Our California criminal defense attorneys will explain the following in this article:

• 1. How does California law define the crime of arson?
  • 1.1. Willfully and maliciously
  • 1.2. Structure and forest land
  • 1.3. Property
• 2. Are there defenses to a 451 PC charge?
  • 2.1. No willful act
  • 2.2. Fire not started by arson
  • 2.3. No intent to defraud
• 3. What are the penalties?
• 4. What is the difference between 451 and 452 PC?
• 5. Are there immigration consequences?
• 6. Can a person get a conviction expunged?
• 7. Does a conviction affect gun rights?
• 8. Is PC 451 a DA strike?
• 9. Are there related offenses?
  • 9.1. First-degree murder – PC 187
  • 9.2. Burglary – PC 459
  • 9.3. Trespass – PC 602

1. How does California law define the crime of arson?

Penal Code 451 PC is the California statute that makes it a crime for a person to set fire to any:

• structure,
• forest land, or
• property.¹

A prosecutor must prove the following to convict a person under the legal definition of arson:

1. the defendant set fire to or burned, or caused the burning of, a structure, forest land, or property, and
2. he acted willfully and maliciously.²

To set fire to or burn by means of fire to damage or destroy with fire either all or part of something, no matter how small the part.³

The simple charring of wood is sufficient evidence of a “fire or burn.”⁴

Questions often arise under this statute on the meaning of:

• willfully and maliciously,
• structure and forest land, and
• property.

1.1. Willfully and maliciously

For purposes of this law, someone commits an act willfully when he or she does it

• willingly or
• on purpose.⁵

Under common law, someone acts maliciously when he or she intentionally does a wrongful act or when he or she acts with the unlawful intent to:

• defraud,
• annoy, or
• injure someone else.⁶

Example: Becky is not guilty of an arson attack if, while reaching for a glass of water, her elbow knocks down a candle and it starts a fire in her condo building. Even if Becky suffered from pyromania, here the fire began because of an accident and not a willful act, and there was no malicious burning of her own property. Further, Becky had no intent to defraud, annoy, or injure someone.

Note that an accused can still be convicted of arson, per Penal Code 452, even if he does not act willfully and maliciously. This code section applies to “reckless” burning. It says it is a crime for a person to recklessly set fire to or burn any

• structure,
• forest land, or
• property.

“Recklessly” is a lower standard than willfully and maliciously. A person acts “recklessly” if:

1. he is aware that his actions could present a substantial and unjustifiable risk of causing a fire,
2. he ignores that risk, and
3. doing so is a gross deviation from how a reasonable person would act in the same situation.⁷

1.2. Structure and forest land

California law states that a structure is any:

• building,
• bridge,
• tunnel,
• power plant, or
• commercial or public tent.⁸

Arson fire damage to fixtures within a building may fall into the category of a “structure” if the fixtures are an integral part of the building.⁹

PC 451 says that a forest land means:

• brush-covered land,
• cut-over land,
• forest,
• grasslands, or
• woods.¹⁰

1.3. Property

Property, under California arson laws, means personal property or land (real property) other than forest land.¹¹

This definition includes items like:

• clothing, and
• trash.¹²

Note that arson of property does not include a person burning his own personal property. This is unless:

• the burning was done with an intent to defraud, or
• someone was injured in the building.¹³

Example: Nia is not guilty of arson if she does a controlled burn of an old shed on her property in order to remove it.

However, she may be guilty of the offense if someone gets hurt in the burn or she performed the burn to defraud her insurance company.

2. Are there defenses to a 451 PC charge?

A defendant can raise a legal defense to try and beat an arson charge.

Three common defenses to arson are:

1. no willful act,
2. fire not started by arson, and/or
3. no intent to defraud.

(Another potential defense is that law enforcement committed misconduct, such as coercing a confession.)

2.1. No willful act

Recall that an accused can only be guilty under this statute if he acted willfully. This means it is a valid defense for the defendant to show that he did not start a fire on purpose (for example, maybe he or she burnt something on accident).

2.2. Fire not started by arson

It is always a defense in arson cases for a defendant to show that a fire was started by something else other than arson. Some common causes of fires include:

• harsh weather or lightning (especially for wildfires),
• faulty or old wiring,
• cooking and heating equipment, and
• smoking.

An accused can try to show his innocence by showing that one of the above caused a fire, and not his own acts.

2.3. No intent to defraud

As to arson of property, recall that a person cannot be guilty of burning his own personal property unless:

• the burning was done with an intent to defraud, or
• someone was injured in the building.

One defense, therefore, to arson of personal property is for the arson suspect to show that there was no intent to defraud. A person intends to commit fraud when he tries to deceive or trick another person.

Example: Jerome is not guilty of arson if an arson investigation shows that his own home partially burnt down because of a spark from his fireplace. This is an accident as opposed to an intent to defraud.

The district attorney can charge him with arson, though, if he intentionally set fire to his home for insurance reasons. Here, there is an intent to defraud the insurer.

3. What are the penalties?

A violation of PC 451 is charged as a felony in California.¹⁴

The specific punishment for felony arson depends on:

• the type of property that was burned, and
• whether or not someone suffered a burn injury.

The potential state prison sentences for willful/malicious counts of arson are:

• 16 months, two years, or three years for malicious arson of personal property,
• two, four, or six years for malicious arson of a structure or forest land,
• three, five, or eight years for malicious arson that causes an inhabited structure or inhabited property to burn, and
• five, seven, or nine years for arson that causes great bodily injury.¹⁵

Incarceration is served in state prison, not a county jail. Alleged arsonists are never prosecuted under PC 451 for just a misdemeanor or wobbler offense.

4. What is the difference between 451 and 452 PC?

Whereas California Penal Code 451 PC outlaws willfully and maliciously setting fire to property, California Penal Code 452 PC outlaws recklessly setting fire to property.

“Recklessly” is less criminally blameworthy than “willfully and maliciously.” When you are reckless, you did not necessarily mean any harm; you were just acting in an extremely risky way that any reasonable person should have known would likely result in property damage or injuries.

An example of PC 452 is dropping a match on the street after lighting your cigarette, and the match then causes some debris to catch fire. You may not have meant for the match to cause a fire, but you should have known that causing a fire was the likely result of your reckless actions.

Since violating PC 452 does not involve malicious and willful behavior, it is only a misdemeanor offense.¹⁶

5. Are there immigration consequences?

An arson conviction will have negative immigration consequences.

United States immigration law says that certain kinds of criminal convictions can lead to:

• a non-citizen being deported, and
• a non-citizen being marked “inadmissible.”

A category of “deportable” or “inadmissible” crimes includes “crimes of moral turpitude.”

California law states that arson is in fact a crime of moral turpitude.¹⁷ This means an arson conviction can lead to an immigrant being deported or labeled as inadmissible.

6. Can a person get a conviction expunged?

A person convicted of this crime is entitled to an expungement provided that he:

1. successfully completes probation, or
2. completes a jail term (whichever is relevant).

If a party violates a probation term, he could still possibly get the offense expunged. This, though, would be in the judge’s discretion.

Under Penal Code 1203.4, an expungement releases an individual from virtually “all penalties and disabilities” arising out of the conviction.¹⁸

7. Does a conviction affect gun rights?

A conviction under 451 PC will have a negative effect on the convicted party’s gun rights.

According to California law, convicted felons are prohibited from acquiring or possessing a gun in California.

Since arson is charged as a felony, a conviction of this crime will result in defendants losing their right to own and possess a gun.

8. Is PC 451 a DA strike?

Arson that causes great bodily injury (PC 451(a)) or arson that causes an inhabited structure or inhabited property to burn (PC 451(b)) is a strike offense. This is because PC 667.5 classifies PC 451(a) and (b) as violent felonies. Defendants face enhanced penalties for felony convictions if they have prior strike offenses.¹⁹

Learn more about California’s Three Strikes Laws.

9. Are there related offenses?

There are three crimes related to the burning of property.²⁰ These are:

1. first-degree murder – PC 187
2. burglary – PC 459, and
3. trespass – PC 602.

9.1. First-degree murder – PC 187

Per Penal Code 187 PC, first-degree murder may be charged when a killing:

• is accomplished by means of a destructive device, armor-piercing ammunition, poison, lying in wait, or torture, or
• is done in a way that is willful, deliberate and premeditated, or
• invokes the California felony murder rule.

Note that like arson, a conviction of first-degree murder may require a showing of willfulness on the part of the accused.

9.2. Burglary – PC 459

Penal Code 459 PC says that a burglary occurs when a person:

1. enters any residential or commercial building or room, and
2. does so with the intent to commit a felony or a theft once inside.

Note that burglary applies to a narrower subject area than arson. PC 459 only applies to residential or commercial buildings (and does not include “structures” and “forest land”).

9.3. Trespass – PC 602

Penal Code 602 PC is California’s law that makes it a crime to trespass.

A person commits trespassing when he or she enters, or remains on, someone else’s property without permission or a right to do so.

Unlike arson, there is no requirement under this law that the defendant act with any specific willfulness or maliciousness.

For additional help…

For additional guidance or to discuss your case with a criminal defense attorney, we invite you to contact our criminal defense lawyers at Shouse Law Group by phone, contact form, or social media. We have law offices throughout the state of California, including Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino, and more.

For more information, go to Cal Fire (fire.ca.gov).

For similar accusations in Nevada, please see our article on “Nevada ‘Arson’ Laws (NRS 205.010).”

For similar accusations in Colorado, please see our article on “Colorado’s Arson Laws.”

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