Petty Theft with a Prior

Petty theft with a prior, CA Penal Code 666, can elevate the small crime of PC 666 petty theft to a felony and could potentially lead to 3 years in state prison. In order to be convicted of PC 666 petty theft with a prior you need to first be convicted of petty theft, for a full understanding of petty theft read our CA Penal Code 484 article.

The legal definition of CA PC 666 is as follows:

1. That you have qualifying prior convictions of theft crimes
2. That you served time in jail or prison because of those convictions

In order to have a qualifying prior conviction you must have been convicted of at least one of the following theft crimes:

• Petty Theft , CA Penal Code 484
• Grand Theft , CA Penal Code 487
• Grand Theft Auto, CA Penal Code 487
• Burglary , CA Penal Code 459
• Carjacking , CA Penal Code 215
• Robbery , CA Penal Code 211
• Receiving Stolen Property, CA Penal Code 496

It’s important to note that being charged with the crime does not warrant a qualifying conviction, you must actually be convicted. Simply having one conviction of the crimes listed above will not qualify you for the more harsh sentencing of CA Penal Code 666 PC petty theft. 

In order to be eligible for the sentence enhancement you need to either:

1. Have three or more convictions of the crimes listed above, or
2. Have one conviction of the crimes listed above, and either:
   • A sex crime conviction that makes you register as a sex offender in accordance to CA Penal Code 290
   • A prior conviction for a serious or violent crime