Penal Code § 484(a) PC – Petty Theft – California Law & Penalties

California Penal Code § 484(a) PC prohibits “petty theft,” which is wrongfully taking or stealing someone else’s property valued at $950 or less.

Petty theft is a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in jail and/or $1,000 in fines, plus restitution. However, courts often grant summary probation instead of incarceration.

Officers tend to write petty theft on a citation as PC 484 or 484 PC as abbreviations for the California Penal Code. Examples of petty theft include:

• Borrowing a neighbor’s $300 serving tray and purposefully not returning it,
• Swiping a lipstick from a colleague’s desk while they are away in a meeting, or
• Stealing a smartphone from a shipment of phones belonging to your employer.

Now that Proposition 36 has passed in 2024, petty theft can be punished as a felony carrying up to three years of incarceration if you have two prior theft-related offenses.

Stealing from retail establishments is instead prosecuted as shoplifting (PC 459.5), though it carries the same penalties as petty theft. Meanwhile, stealing property valued at more than $950 is grand theft; however, stealing guns or cars is always treated as grand theft regardless of their value.

The following chart shows the differences between petty theft and grand theft in California.

Below our California criminal defense attorneys discuss what you need to know about petty theft. Click on a topic to jump to that section.

• 1. Elements of 484(a) PC
• 2. Defenses
• 3. Penalties
• 4. Immigration Consequences
• 5. Expungements
• 6. Gun Rights
• 7. Related Offenses
• Additional Reading

1. Elements of 484(a) PC

The elements of petty theft are spelled out in California Criminal Jury Instruction “CALCRIM” 1800. For you to be convicted under 484(a) PC, prosecutors must prove beyond a reasonable doubt the following five elements.¹

1. You took possession of property owned by someone else. The petty theft victim does not have to be the actual property owner; it is enough they were in lawful control (“possession”) of the property.²
2. The property’s fair market value is valued at $950 or less. Fair market value is the highest price the property would reasonably have sold for in the open market at the time, and in the place, where it was stolen.³
3. You took the property without the owner’s consent. The consent can be express or implied.
4. When you took the property, you intended to deprive the owner of it permanently. It does not matter whether you intended to use the property taken or benefit from it.⁴
5. You moved the property. This movement (“asportation”) can be slight and brief, but it must transfer possession from the victim to you.⁵

Note that stealing multiple items counts as a single theft charge if:

• The multiple items are stolen from a single victim, and
• The takings are part of one intent, plan, or impulse.

The value of the stolen property will then be the combined value of the multiple items.⁶

Many petty theft suspects are given citations in lieu of an arrest.

Types of Petty Theft

As discussed below, there are four ways petty theft can be committed in California. They all are charged under 484(a) PC and carry identical penalties.

1) Theft by Larceny

Most petty theft cases involve “larceny.” Petty larceny typically occurs when you physically take and carry off another person’s property valued at $950 or lower.⁷

Example: Betty is at a house party when she steals the host’s old iPad, valued at $350. If caught, she would be charged with petty larceny.

2) Theft by Trick

Theft by trick is when you use fraud to deceive a property owner into letting you possess – but not own – the property.⁸

Example: David accosts Michael on the street and asks to use his phone to make an emergency call. After Michael hands over his phone, David walks away with it. If caught, David faces theft by trick charges.

3) Theft by Embezzlement

Theft by embezzlement is when someone entrusts you with their property, and you use it for your own benefit.⁹

Example:  Jewelry store owner Sam gives his assistant Fred the key to the store while Sam goes on vacation. Fred then pawns some of the jewelry for cash. If caught, Fred could be charged with embezzlement. It is not a defense if Fred intended to return the property.

Many white-collar crimes involve embezzlement where financial services employees take money from funds or trusts they were allowed to access.

4) Theft by Fraud or False Pretenses

You commit theft by fraud or false pretense when you defraud a property owner into giving you possession and ownership of their property.¹⁰

Example: Alex offers to mow his neighbor’s lawn for a year in return for their lawn mower. The neighbor hands over the mower, but Alex never mows the lawn. If caught, Alex faces theft by false pretense charges because the neighbor relied on Alex’s fraud.

Petty theft penalties include not only fines but also restitution.

2. Defenses

Here at Shouse Law Group, we have represented literally thousands of people charged with petty theft in California. In our experience, the four most effective defense strategies for getting these cases dismissed are the following.

1) You Took the Property by Accident

It is not uncommon for people to walk away with property that is not theirs because they are distracted. We see these cases a lot when clients are on the phone and are not paying attention to what they are doing.

Accidents are not crimes. You may have to repay the owner for what you took, but criminal charges cannot stand as long as your actions were inadvertent.

2) You Acted with the Owner’s Consent

In these cases, our criminal defense lawyers would compile all the evidence that indicates the property owner allowed you to take the property. This typically includes recorded communications such as text messages, emails, and voicemails.

Perhaps we can also find eyewitnesses who heard the owner consent or video footage that shows the owner giving consent.

3) You Borrowed the Property

You can defend against a theft accusation by showing that you intended to return the property within a reasonable time. A judge or jury determines what is a “reasonable time” by examining the facts of the case.¹¹

If available, we would use your GPS records or any available surveillance video footage that shows you attempted to return the property within a reasonable time after you took it.

You may also have text messages or other recorded communications indicating that you only intended to borrow and not keep the property.

4) You Had a Claim of Right

Taking is not theft if you believed you had a right to the property you took even if that belief is mistaken or unreasonable.¹²

Here, our law firm would find all the relevant paperwork that would cause you to believe you owned the property in question, such as:

• Receipts,
• Bills of sale,
• Invoices, or
• Written communications memorializing a transfer of property.

In some cases, we can also use a polygraph to show that you genuinely thought the property was yours.

Petty theft if a misdemeanor offense in California.

3. Penalties

Petty theft is a misdemeanor under California Penal Code 484(a) PC, carrying:

• Imprisonment in the county jail for up to six months and/or
• A maximum fine of $1,000.

Instead of jail, a judge may grant you misdemeanor (or summary) probation for up to two years. Depending on the case, the judge may also issue a restraining order requiring you to stay away from the theft victim.

If the judge assigns you to probation for longer than one year – and you are under 25 years old – the court must try to refer you to a program modeled on healing-centered, restorative, trauma-informed, and positive youth development approaches and that is provided in collaboration with community-based organizations.¹³

Plea Bargains & Diversion

In our experience fighting petty theft charges, we can usually secure a resolution where you do no jail time at all and merely pay a fine and possibly restitution.

Sometimes prosecutors will reduce the charge down to an infraction under PC 490.1. Though in many cases, you can do a diversion program, which results in your charge getting totally dismissed: This way, no conviction shows up on future background checks by prospective employers.

Petty Theft with a Prior

Petty theft is charged as petty theft with a prior under PC 666 if you already have served jail or prison for a prior conviction of either:

• Petty theft,
• Grand theft,
• Burglary,
• Carjacking,
• Robbery, and/or
• Felony receiving stolen property.

Petty theft with a prior is a wobbler, meaning it can be a misdemeanor or a felony, as this chart shows.¹⁴

Proposition 36

With the passage of Proposition 36, petty theft can be punished as a felony carrying up to three years of incarceration if you have two prior theft-related offenses such as:

• Petty theft,
• Grand theft,
• Burglary,
• Robbery, or
• Carjacking.

A felony carries 16 months, two years, or three years of incarceration.¹⁵

4. Immigration Consequences

A petty theft conviction may have negative immigration consequences.

One California court stated that petty theft done with an intent to defraud is a crime of moral turpitude.¹⁶ There was also a case in which an immigrant was deported for violating PC 484, and that deportation was held as valid.²⁴

If you are a non-citizen charged with any crime, always contact an attorney to try to get it dismissed or reduced to a non-deportable offense. It may be your only way to retain legal status.

Judges can order petty theft defendants to a county jail sentence, not a state prison sentence.

5. Expungements

If you are convicted under 484(a) PC, you can get the offense expunged if you:

1. successfully completed probation and
2. are not currently charged with a crime, on probation, or serving a sentence.

Under Penal Code 1203.4, an expungement releases you from virtually “all penalties and disabilities” arising out of the conviction. Having an expunged criminal record will greatly improve your job prospects.¹⁷

6. Gun Rights

A conviction under Penal Code 484 does not affect your gun rights. Petty theft is not one of the California misdemeanors that carries a 10-year firearm ban.

7. Related Offenses

• Burglary (PC 459) – Entering a residential or commercial structure (or a locked vehicle) with the intent to commit larceny or any felony.
• Carjacking (PC 215) – Taking a vehicle from another person through the use of force or fear.
• Grand theft (PC 487) – Stealing more than $950 worth of property, or stealing a firearm or motor vehicle, or pick-pocketing.
• Grand theft auto (PC 487d1) – Stealing someone else’s vehicle with the intent to deprive the true owner of the vehicle.
• Mail theft (PC 530.5e) – Stealing someone else’s mail.
• Receiving stolen property (PC 496) – Taking possession of property you know is stolen.
• Robbery (PC 211) – Taking property from another using force or fear.

Additional Reading

For more information on theft laws, refer to the following:

• What to Know About Being Addicted to Stealing – Article by WebMD.
• Cleptomaniacs And Shoplifters Anonymous, LLC (CASA) – Self-help group to help overcome compulsive stealing.
• National Association for Shoplifting Prevention (NASP) – Provides programs and services to help stem shoplifting.
• Retail Theft and Robbery Rates Have Risen across California – Article by the Public Policy Institute of California.
• Tax evasion and mechanisms of social control: A comparison with grand and petty theft – Scholarly article in Journal of Economic Psychology.

Legal References: