Grand Theft

What Is Grand Theft Under California Law?

Penal Code § 487 defines grand theft as theft where:

• The property taken has a value exceeding $950; or
• The property falls into a specified category, regardless of value

Below $950, and outside those categories, the offense is petty theft under Penal Code §§ 484 and 488 — a misdemeanor.

Grand Theft vs. Petty Theft

Property That Is Grand Theft Regardless of Value

Firearms — § 487(d)(2). Theft of a firearm is grand theft at any value, and it’s treated as a serious felony with strike consequences.

Automobiles — § 487(d)(1). Vehicle theft is grand theft regardless of the vehicle’s worth.

Property taken from the person of another — § 487(c). This one surprises people. Taking property directly from someone — from their pocket, their hand, or their body — is grand theft even if the item is worth $20. It’s the manner of the taking, not the value, that elevates it.

Certain agricultural and aquacultural products above a lower statutory threshold, reflecting California’s agricultural industry.

The Four Ways Grand Theft Is Committed

California consolidated several historical offenses into one theft statute. The prosecution must prove one of these theories:

Larceny. Physically taking and carrying away property without consent, intending to permanently deprive the owner.

False pretenses. Obtaining property through a knowingly false representation the owner relied on.

Trick. Obtaining possession through deceit, where the owner didn’t intend to transfer ownership.

Embezzlement. Misappropriating property that was entrusted to you — the relationship of trust is the element. → White Collar Crimes

Which theory the prosecution pursues matters, because each has different elements and different weak points.

Aggregation — How Small Thefts Become a Felony

Multiple thefts that would individually be petty theft can be combined into a single grand theft charge where they were part of one scheme or plan.

This arises frequently in:

• Employee theft over a period of time
• Repeated taking from a single source
• A series of related transactions

But aggregation isn’t automatic. The prosecution must establish that the takings were part of a single, continuing scheme rather than separate, unrelated incidents. Where there’s no common plan — different circumstances, different times, different motivations — the charges should stand separately as misdemeanors.

Challenging aggregation can convert one felony into several misdemeanors, or into nothing at all.

What the Prosecution Has to Prove

For grand theft by larceny, the prosecution must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that:

1. You took possession of property owned by someone else;
2. You took it without the owner’s consent;
3. When you took it, you intended to deprive the owner of it permanently, or for long enough to deprive them of a major portion of its value;
4. You moved the property, however slightly, and kept it for some period; and
5. The property’s value exceeded $950, or it falls within a specified category.

Two elements carry most cases.

Intent must exist at the moment of taking. Borrowing, a genuine misunderstanding about permission, or forming an intent to keep something only later are all inconsistent with this element.

Value is where the felony/misdemeanor line gets drawn — and it’s an evidentiary question, not a given.

Why Valuation Is the Whole Fight

The dollar figure in a grand theft case comes from the complaining party — a store, an employer, or an individual — and nobody independently verifies it before charges are filed.

California’s standard is fair market value at the time of the taking: what a willing buyer would pay a willing seller for that property, in that condition, at that moment.

That standard is routinely ignored in practice:

• Retail price substituted for market value. Stores report the tag price, which reflects markup, not resale value.
• Used property valued as new. Electronics, tools, and equipment reported at original purchase price with no depreciation.
• Sale pricing ignored. An item discounted to $800 reported at its $1,200 list price.
• Replacement cost substituted. What it costs the owner to buy a new one, rather than what the old one was worth.
• Sentimental or claimed value rather than market value.
• Sets and collections aggregated inappropriately.

An independent appraisal, comparable sales evidence, or simple documentation of condition and age can move a valuation below $950. When it does, a wobbler with felony exposure becomes a misdemeanor.

Penalties

⚠️ VERIFY BEFORE PUBLISHING — figures require Polina’s sign-off. See Open Items.

Grand theft under § 487 is a wobbler. As a misdemeanor it carries county jail exposure, fines, probation, and restitution. As a felony it carries state prison or county jail exposure under realignment.

Grand theft firearm under § 487(d)(2) is treated more severely and carries strike consequences as a serious felony.

Enhancements can apply where the value taken is substantial, and white collar enhancements may attach in cases involving a pattern of related felony conduct.

Consequences Beyond Sentencing

• Employment. Theft convictions are weighed more heavily by employers than almost any other offense, because they read as a statement about trustworthiness. Any role involving money, inventory, or client property becomes difficult.
• Professional licensing. Boards in finance, real estate, insurance, nursing, and law all scrutinize theft convictions closely.
• Immigration. Theft offenses are frequently treated as crimes involving moral turpitude, with serious consequences for non-citizens.
• Restitution, based on the same valuation that drove the charge.
• Bonding and security clearances.
• Strike consequences in firearm cases.

Defenses to Grand Theft

The value was $950 or less. The most frequently productive defense. An independent valuation using the correct legal standard — fair market value at the time of taking — often lands below the threshold.

No intent to permanently deprive. Intent must exist when the property was taken. Borrowing, an intention to return, and genuine confusion about permission all defeat this element.

Claim of right. Taking property you honestly believed was yours, or that you were entitled to, is a defense even if the belief turned out to be mistaken. This arises constantly in disputes over wages, shared property, and business assets.

Consent. Where the owner permitted the taking, or where a permission dispute has been recharacterized as theft.

No common scheme. Where the prosecution has aggregated separate incidents, challenging the single-scheme theory can break a felony into misdemeanors.

Mistaken identity. Particularly in cases built on surveillance footage, brief observations, or assumptions about who had access.

Insufficient evidence. Many of these cases rest on an inventory discrepancy, an accounting gap, or a loss prevention account without independent corroboration.

Unlawful search or seizure. Evidence obtained improperly can be suppressed.

Resolving the Case Without a Felony

Reduction to petty theft. Where valuation lands below $950 — the most common favorable outcome.

Reduction under PC § 17(b). A wobbler filed as a felony can be reduced to a misdemeanor by the court.

Civil compromise under PC §§ 1377–1378, where the loss has been made whole and the victim informs the court they’re satisfied.

Diversion, available in many jurisdictions for first offenses, ending in dismissal.

Negotiated reduction to a non-theft offense. This matters more than it sounds — a conviction for a non-theft offense reads entirely differently to an employer or licensing board.

Expungement where a conviction has already occurred. → Expungements

Proposition 47 Reclassification

Proposition 47 reclassified certain theft offenses, and people with older felony convictions for conduct that would now be a misdemeanor may be eligible for reclassification or resentencing. If you have a prior grand theft conviction from before 2014, it’s worth having reviewed.

Why a Former Prosecutor Matters

Grand theft is charged on a number that arrives with the police report — a loss figure from a store, an employer, or a victim — and gets accepted at face value, because the filing process has no mechanism for questioning it.

Polina Logrue made those filing decisions at the Orange County District Attorney’s Office. She knows how loss figures are treated, what prompts a prosecutor to re-examine a valuation, and what the office will accept on a reduction for a first-time defendant.

She also knows when an aggregation theory reflects a genuine scheme and when it reflects a convenient way to turn several misdemeanors into one felony.

Meet Polina →

Charged With Grand Theft? Do This First

1. Get the valuation the charge is based on. You’re entitled to see how the number was reached.
2. Document the property’s actual condition, age, and market value — comparable listings, purchase records, depreciation.
3. Don’t explain or apologize to anyone, including loss prevention, an employer, or investigators.
4. Preserve evidence of permission or entitlement — texts, agreements, pay records, anything showing you were authorized or believed you were.
5. If the charge aggregates multiple incidents, write down each one separately with its circumstances.
6. Tell your attorney about any professional license or immigration status.
7. Call before your arraignment.

Call (949) 758-4469 · Free Consultation

Related Charges

• Theft & Property Crimes — petty theft, shoplifting, receiving stolen property
• Burglary — Penal Code § 459
• White Collar Crimes — embezzlement and fraud theories
• Gun Charges — where a firearm was taken
• Expungements — clearing a prior conviction