California Criminal Defense Blog

California Penal Code 496 defines Receiving Stolen Property as purchasing or otherwise taking possession of items you know to be stolen. As a general rule, this means someone else actually stole the goods and you subsequently received them. The original thief received stolen goods too when he stole them but he can't be charged with both the original theft and receiving stolen property. Otherwise Penal Code 496 could tag along with practically any theft charge.

However, California law allows one exception. This happens when a person steals an automobile and is later caught driving it. Under the case of People v Garza (35 Cal. 4th 866), this person can be charged with both Receiving Stolen Property and California automobile theft under Vehicle Code 10851.

The key is that for the state to add the PC 496 charge, it must be "post-theft driving." This means the person wasn't simply driving the car away from the place it was stolen (otherwise this would be part of the theft itself). But the courts have not clarified how much time must pass for the post-theft exception to apply. If the thief is caught driving the car several days later, it clearly would. But if just a few minutes, or an hour, or a few hours have passed, the law is not so clear.

California has two primary criminal laws that punish people for driving a motor vehicle when they are not properly licensed. California Vehicle Code 12500 makes it a misdemeanor to drive without a valid driver’s license. California Vehicle Code 14601 makes it a misdemeanor to drive on a suspended license.

California Vehicle Code 12500 is a relatively straightforward statute. It makes it a crime to drive without a validly issued license. This most often applies to people who never obtained a drivers license in the first place, or who failed to renew their license upon expiration, or people who moved to California and failed to switch from a license issued in the previous state to a California drivers license.

Vehicle Code 14601, on the other hand, applies to someone who had a valid driver’s license but whose license got suspended. The reasons for the suspension could include a California DUI conviction, failure to pay traffic fines and DMV fees, or becoming a "negligent operator" accumulating too many points on one's driving record.

Vehicle Code 14601 cases can be more difficult for the prosecutor to prove. To be guilty of the crime, the driver must have knowledge that his license was suspended at the time of driving. Unless a judge, police officer or DMV official specifically advised him/her of the suspension, this "knowledge" element can be difficult to prove (beyond a reasonable doubt, anyhow). But though VC 14601 is a tougher crime for the state to substantiate, the penalties for California Vehicle Code 14601 are substantially greater.