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California Receiving Stolen Property Defense

Receiving Stolen Property Prosecution – California Penal Code Section 496

Under Section 496 of the California Penal Code, receiving stolen property is a serious crime. To prove that the defendant is guilty of receiving stolen property, the prosecution must prove that:

  1. The defendant (bought/received/sold/aided in selling/concealed or withheld from its owner/) property that had been (stolen/obtained by extortion);
  2. When the defendant (bought/received/sold/aided in selling/concealed or withheld from its owner) the property, (he/she) knew that the property had been (stolen/obtained by extortion);

    3. AND

  3. The defendant actually knew of the presence of the property.

Additional Information:
Property is stolen if it was obtained by any type of theft, or by burglary or robbery. Theft includes obtaining property by larceny, embezzlement, false pretense, or trick.

Property is obtained by extortion if: (1) the property was obtained from another person with that person’s consent, and (2) that person’s consent was obtained through the use of force or fear. For example, if you know a husband who has been cheating on his wife, and then you threaten the husband that you will tell his wife unless he pays you $1,000, that is extortion.

To receive property means to take possession and control of it. Mere presence near or access to the property is not enough. Two or more people can possess the property at the same time. A person does not have to actually hold or touch something to possess it. It is enough if the person has control over it or the right to control it, either personally or through another person.

Dual Convictions Prohibited
Being in possession and/or receiving stolen property can involve multiple crimes. However, a person may not be convicted of stealing and of receiving the same property. See California Penal Code Section 496(a). If the defendant has been convicted of one of the crimes, he or she may not be convicted of the other.

Receiving Multiple Items on Single Occasion
A defendant who receives more than one item of stolen property on a single occasion commits one offense of receiving stolen property.