Penal Code § 591 PC – Damaging Phone, Electrical or Utility Lines

Penal Code 591 PC makes it a crime to maliciously disconnect, remove, injure, or obstruct any telephone, cable, or electrical line. This section can be charged as a misdemeanor or felony and is punishable by up to 3 years in jail.

The full text of the statute reads as follows:

591. A person who unlawfully and maliciously takes down, removes, injures, disconnects, cuts, or obstructs a line of telegraph, telephone, or cable television, or any line used to conduct electricity, or any part thereof, or appurtenances or apparatus connected therewith, including, but not limited to, a backup deep cycle battery or other power supply, or severs any wire thereof, or makes an unauthorized connection with any line, other than a telegraph, telephone, or cable television line, used to conduct electricity, or any part thereof, or appurtenances or apparatus connected therewith, is subject to punishment by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year, by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by both that imprisonment and fine, or by imprisonment in a county jail for 16 months, two or three years pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170 and a fine of up to ten thousand dollars ($10,000).

Examples of unlawful acts

• in a domestic violence-related altercation, a husband smashing a phone with a baseball bat
• a person disconnecting a neighborhood electrical wire to cause a power outage
• a woman purposefully injuring her neighbor’s cable television line out of payback

Legal Defenses

There are three effective legal defenses to charges brought under this statute. These are showing that you:

• did not act maliciously,
• committed an accident, and/or
• acted out of necessity.

Penalties

A violation of California Penal Code Section 591 is a wobbler offense. This means a prosecutor can charge it as either a misdemeanor or a felony.

A misdemeanor conviction is punishable by custody in county jail for up to one year.

A felony conviction is punishable by a jail term of up to three years.

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

• 1. When is injuring/obstructing a utility, electrical, or telephone line a crime?
• 2. What are some common defenses?
  • 2.1 No malice
  • 2.2 Accident
  • 2.3 Necessity
• 3. What are the penalties for a violation of Penal Code 591?
• 4. Can I get a conviction expunged?
• 5. What are some related offenses?
  • 5.1 Damaging a communication device to prevent help – PC 591.5
  • 5.2 Vandalism and graffiti – PC 594
  • 5.3 Burglary – PC 459

1. When is injuring/obstructing a utility, electrical, or telephone line a crime?

A prosecutor must prove the following elements to convict you under this statute successfully:

1. you unlawfully took down, removed, damaged, obstructed, or disconnected a telegraph/telephone/cable television/electrical line, or mechanical equipment connected to the line, and
2. you did so maliciously.¹

For purposes of this statute, you act “maliciously” when you:

• intentionally do a wrongful act, or
• act with the unlawful intent to annoy or injure someone else.²

Note that under California law, you are guilty under this statute even if you remove a battery from another person’s cell phone.³

California law makes it a crime to maliciously obstruct any telephone, cable, or electrical line.

2. What are some common defenses?

Criminal defense attorneys draw upon several different legal strategies to help defend against accusations under these laws. Three common defenses include showing that you:

1. did not act maliciously,
2. committed an accident, and/or
3. acted out of necessity.

2.1 No malice

Recall that you are guilty under this statute only if you acted maliciously. A defense is for you to show that you did not act with this intent.

2.2 Accident

This is a similar defense to that of the above. Here, you show that while you may have injured a phone or electrical line, you did so by accident. This is opposed to acting purposely to injure a line.

2.3 Necessity

Under a necessity defense, you essentially try to avoid guilt by showing that you had a sufficiently good reason to commit the crime.  In the context of a PC 591 charge, you could attempt to show that you disconnected or injured a line because there was no other choice (for example, because of an emergency).

3. What are the penalties for a violation of Penal Code 591?

Breaking this law is a wobbler offense. A wobbler is a crime that a prosecutor can charge as either a misdemeanor or a felony, depending on:

• your criminal history, and
• the facts of the case.

A misdemeanor conviction under this code section is punishable by a county jail term (as opposed to a state prison term) of up to one year.⁴

A felony conviction is punishable by a maximum jail term of three years.⁵

Note that a judge has the authority to award you misdemeanor (or summary) probation in lieu of jail time.

Violating PC 591 can be a felony or a misdemeanor in California.

4. Can I get a conviction expunged?

If you are convicted under these laws, you may get the conviction expunged, per Penal Code 1203.4 PC. This is provided you successfully completed:

• a jail term, or
• probation (whichever was imposed).

5. What are some related offenses?

Three laws related to this crime are:

1. damaging a communication device to prevent help – PC 591.5,
2. vandalism and graffiti – PC 594, and
3. burglary – PC 459.

5.1 Damaging a communication device to prevent help – PC 591.5

California Penal Code 591.5 PC makes it a crime to maliciously damage or obstruct a communication device in order to prevent a person from using it to seek help.

Note that this statute requires a prosecutor to show that you damaged a device for the purpose of preventing a person from getting help. This “prevention of help” element is not included under PC 591.

5.2 Vandalism and graffiti – PC 594

Penal Code 594 PC is the California statute that defines vandalism as maliciously:

• damaging,
• destroying, or
• defacing another person’s property.

While Penal Code 591 focuses on the damage to electrical, phone, and utility lines, this statute applies to the damage to any property.

5.3 Burglary – PC 459

Penal Code 459 PC is the California statute that defines burglary as the act of entering any commercial or residential structure, or locked vehicle, with the intent to commit:

• grand theft,
• petty theft, or
• any felony once inside.

While PC 591 is a separate and distinct crime from burglary, the former offense is often committed while burglarizing a property or vehicle.

Call our law firm for help. We offer consultations.

For additional guidance or to discuss your case with a criminal defense attorney, we invite you to contact our law firm at the Shouse Law Group. Our trusted attorneys offer a consultation, and our law offices represent clients throughout California, including those in Los Angeles, Orange County, Glendale, Long Beach, Riverside, San Diego, and San Bernardino County.

Legal References:

1. CALCRIM No. 2902 – Damaging Phone or Electrical Line. Judicial Council of California Criminal Jury Instructions (2020 edition). See also People v. Quarles (2018) 25 Cal.App.5th 631.
2. See same. See also People v. Santana (2013) 56 Cal. 4th 999; and, People v. Lopez (1986) 176 Cal.App.3d 545.
3. People v. Tafoya (2001) 92 Cal.App.4th 220.
4. California Penal Code 591 PC.
5. See same.