Petty Theft in Colorado - Law, Definition, Penalties, Defenses

Who can be charged with "petty theft" in Colorado? [2022 UPDATES IN DESCRIPTION]

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Under § 18-4-401 (2)(b) CRS, Colorado law defines the crime of petty theft (also called petty larceny) as intentionally stealing property valued at less than $300.00. This crime is a petty offense that can be punished by up to 10 days in jail and/or a fine of up to $300 as well as a court order to make victim restitution payments.

Examples of petty larceny offenses may include:

the Colorado offense of shoplifting,
the Colorado offense of passing bad checks, or
theft by the Colorado offense of extortion

It may be possible to negotiate the criminal charge down to a lesser petty offense or even a full dismissal as part of a Colorado plea deal. Common petty theft defenses include:

you were the only owner of the property,
you did not deliberately steal the property, or
the police’s search and seizure in Colorado was unconstitutional

To help you better understand Colorado’s petty larceny law, our Denver Colorado criminal defense lawyers discuss the following, below:

Also see our articles on misdemeanor theft in Colorado and felony theft in Colorado.

grocery cart and magnifying glass cartoon that say "petty theft"

Petty larceny in Colorado is the act of stealing less than $300 worth of money or other property.

1. What is the definition of petty theft in Colorado?

You commit petty theft of property in violation of section 18-4-401 of the Colorado Revised Statutes (C.R.S.) when you intentionally and unlawfully take property worth less than $300 that does not belong to you. Petty theft can take several forms, such as:

stealing goods from a store,
promising to pay for a product and never paying, or
failing to return a borrowed item within seventy-two (72) hours of the agreed-upon return time

Note that you can be convicted of theft if you take property that you co-own, and you fail to get the co-owners’ authorization.¹

2. What are the penalties under CRS 18-4-401(2)(b)?

Theft is a Colorado petty offense if the value of the item(s) is less than three hundred dollars ($300). In addition to restitution to the victim, consequences of Colorado petty offense theft can include a maximum penalty of:

10 days in jail and/or
$300 in fines²

If you allegedly commit multiple theft crimes within a six (6)-month period, they may be aggregated into a single count of theft. In such a case, the value for purposes of sentencing is the aggregate value of all the items allegedly taken.³

Note that the judge (or jury) ultimately determines the stolen items’ value using a reasonable basis, such as standard market value.⁴

Also note it is automatically a Colorado felony to pick-pocket or to steal from a disabled or elderly person, even if the stolen items are worth less than $300.⁵ Learn more about Colorado felony theft laws.

2.1. Attempted theft

Attempted petty theft is charged the same way as petty theft: A petty offense carrying up to 10 days in jail and/or up to $300 in fines.⁶

2.2. Penalties for misdemeanor and felony theft

Theft of anything worth at least $300 but less than $2,000 is a Colorado misdemeanor. Consequences of misdemeanor theft range from:

probation to 364 days in jail, and/or
a fine of up to $1,000.

Theft of anything worth $2,000 or more is a felony. Depending on the value of the item(s), Colorado felony theft can be punished by:

one to twenty-four (1 – 24) years in prison, and/or
a fine of $1,000 to $1,000,000.⁶

Learn more in our articles on misdemeanor theft in Colorado and felony theft in Colorado.

3. What are the defenses?

The best defense to Colorado theft charges will depend on the facts of the case and the type of property allegedly stolen. However, common defenses to petty theft often include:

you were the only owner of the property,
you did not deliberately steal the property, or
the police’s search was unconstitutional

Even though petty larceny is a minor offense, it still looks bad on criminal records. Therefore, anyone facing these charges is advised to hire an attorney to try to fight for a dismissal.

3.1. You were the only owner of the property

It is not possible to steal something that belongs only to you. Typical evidence that can prove ownership may include:

sales receipts
title documents
contracts

If the defense attorney can demonstrate that you were the only owner of the property allegedly taken, the larceny charges should be dismissed.

3.2. You did not deliberately steal the property

Larceny is an intent offense in Colorado.⁷ Because of this, you are not guilty of theft if you genuinely did not know you took another person’s property:

Example: Haley is listening to her iPhone while shopping for lipstick. She is so engrossed in the music that she absentmindedly walks out of the store without paying. Of course Haley owes the store the price of the lipstick, but she should not be convicted of larceny. Since she genuinely forgot to pay because her mind was somewhere else, she committed no crime.

In every criminal case, the D.A. has the burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Intent to steal is often hard for prosecutors to prove precisely because it requires getting inside of your head.

3.3. Police’s search was unconstitutional

The Fourth Amendment is very clear that the police may not conduct searches without a search warrant — or without a good reason to forego getting a warrant. Whenever the police may have committed an illegal search, the defense attorney can file a motion to suppress evidence in Colorado:

This motion argues to the court that the police’s misconduct tainted the evidence they found. If the court grants the motion and disregards the evidence, then the prosecution may lose the case due to insufficient evidence.

4. Related offenses

Colorado has a number of crimes that are often charged along with theft. In many cases, you can be punished for both theft and these related crimes:

Deceptive sales – 18-4-401 S.R.S.
Theft of Trade Secrets – 18–4–408 C.R.S.
Aggravated Motor Vehicle Theft – 18–4–409 C.R.S.
Identity Theft — 18–5–902. C.R.S.
Theft of Sound Recordings
Theft of Cable Television Service
Robbery – 18-4-301, C.R.S.
Burglary – 18-4-202-18-4-204 C.R.S.

In particular, defense attorneys often see theft charged with robbery — when items are taken directly from an alleged victim, and/or burglary — when someone is charged with breaking into a building or automobile for the purpose of stealing something.

For additional help…

Have you been accused of a crime? Our Colorado criminal defense attorneys see clients as more than just a list of charges. Every client has a name; every client has a story. Our law firm is here to see to it that the prosecutor and, if necessary, the jury know your side.

Arrested in California? See our articles on California petty theft laws and California grand theft laws.

Arrested in Nevada? See our articles on Nevada petit larceny laws and Nevada grand larceny laws.

Legal references:

Colorado Revised Statutes § 18-4-401 – Theft (1) A person commits theft when he or she knowingly obtains, retains, or exercises control over anything of value of another without authorization or by threat or deception; receives, loans money by pawn or pledge on, or disposes of anything of value or belonging to another that he or she knows or believes to have been stolen; or procures food or accommodations from a public establishment without making payment therefore, and:
(a) Intends to deprive the other person permanently of the use or benefit of the thing of value;
(b) Knowingly uses, conceals, or abandons the thing of value in such manner as to deprive the other person permanently of its use or benefit;
(c) Uses, conceals, or abandons the thing of value intending that such use, concealment, or abandonment will deprive the other person permanently of its use or benefit;
(d) Demands any consideration to which he or she is not legally entitled as a condition of restoring the thing of value to the other person; or
(e) Knowingly retains the thing of value more than seventy-two hours after the agreed-upon time of return in any lease or hire agreement.
(1.5) For the purposes of this section, a thing of value is that of “another” if anyone other than the defendant has a possessory or proprietary interest therein.
(2) Theft is:
(b) A petty offense if the value of the thing involved is less than three hundred dollars.
CRS 18-6.5-102 (2). Prior to March 1, 2022, petty theft was defined as stealing items valued at less than $50. Petty theft was prosecuted as a class 1 petty offense carrying up to $500 in fines and/or up to six months in jail. SB21-271.
CRS 18-4-401 (4)(a); Roberts v. People (2009) 203 P.3d 513, rehearing denied. See also People v. Lawrence (Court of Appeals of Colorado, Division Six, 2019) 487 P.3d 1066; Haleseh v. People (Colo. 2020) 463 P.3d 249. See also People v. Rishel (2002) 50 P.3d 938 (“The Hearing Board found that respondent’s knowingly exercising control over the funds when authorization had been withdrawn, his demand that funds be paid by cashier’s check rather than historically acceptable personal checks, his failure to respond to communication efforts from the third parties, and his delivery of one set of tickets to another party rather than the rightful owner provided sufficient evidence to find that respondent knew that his use of the funds was practically certain to result in permanently depriving the third parties of their property, thus constituting theft in violation of § 18-4-401(1)(b), 6 C.R.S. (2000) and a violation of Colo. RPC 8.4(b).”)
People v. Leonard (Colo. App. 1979) 608 P.2d 832.
CRS 18-6.5-103 (5) & (7.5).
CRS 8-2-101. Prior to March 1, 2022, attempted petty theft was prosecuted as a class 2 petty offense carrying a small fine. See note 2.
CRS 18-4-401.

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Colorado Petty Theft (Larceny) Law – § 18-4-401 (2)(b) CRS