Amended in Senate June 19, 2014

Amended in Assembly May 1, 2014

Amended in Assembly April 22, 2014

California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly BillNo. 1782


Introduced by Assembly Member Chesbro

(Coauthor: Assembly Member Gatto)

February 18, 2014


An act to amend Section 591 of the Penal Code, relating to property crimes.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 1782, as amended, Chesbro. Wires: unlawful removal.

Under existing law it is a crime for any person to unlawfully and maliciously take down, remove, injure, or obstruct any line of telegraph, telephone, or cable television, or any other line used to conduct electricity, or any part thereof, or appurtenances or apparatus connected therewith, or to sever any wire, or make any unauthorized connection with any line, other than a telegraph, telephone, or cable television line, used to conduct electricity. Under existing law a violation of these provisions is punishable by imprisonment in a county jail not to exceed 16 months, 2 or 3 years, or by a fine not exceeding $500, or by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year.

This bill would additionally make it a crime for any person to unlawfully and maliciously disconnect or cut a line of telegraph, telephone, or cable television, or any line used to conduct electricity, or any part thereof, or appurtenance or apparatus connected therewith. The bill would specify that a connected appurtenance or apparatus includes a backup deep cycle battery or other power supply. The bill wouldbegin delete also increase the above-specified fine to an amount not exceeding $10,000 per incidentend deletebegin insert make the crime punishable by imprisonment in a county jail not exceeding one year, by a fine not exceeding $1,000, or by both that imprisonment and fine, or by imprisonment in a county jail for 16 months, or 2 or 3 years and a fine not exceeding $10,000end insert.

By expanding the scope of a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

P2    1

SECTION 1.  

Section 591 of the Penal Code is amended to
2read:

3

591.  

A person who unlawfully and maliciously takes down,
4removes, injures, disconnects, cuts, or obstructs a line of telegraph,
5telephone, or cable television, or any line used to conduct
6electricity, or any part thereof, or appurtenances or apparatus
7connected therewith, including, but not limited to, a backup deep
8cycle battery or other power supply, or severs any wire thereof, or
9makes an unauthorized connection with any line, other than a
10telegraph, telephone, or cable television line, used to conduct
11electricity, or any part thereof, or appurtenances or apparatus
12connected therewith, isbegin delete punishableend deletebegin insert subject to punishmentend insert by
13imprisonmentbegin insert in a county jail not exceeding one year, by a fine
14not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000), or by both that
15imprisonment and fine, or by imprisonment in a county jail for 16
16months, two or three yearsend insert
pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section
171170begin delete, or by a fine not exceeding ten thousand dollars ($10,000)
18per incident, or imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding one
19yearend delete
begin insert and a fine of up to ten thousand dollars ($10,000)end insert.

20

SEC. 2.  

No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
21Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
22the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
P3    1district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
2infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
3for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of
4the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within
5the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
6Constitution.



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