BILL ANALYSIS
SB 24
Page 1
Date of Hearing: June 16, 2009
Chief Counsel: Gregory Pagan
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY
Juan Arambula, Chair
SB 24 (Oropeza) - As Amended: June 11, 2009
SUMMARY : Eliminates the sunset date on cargo theft, a
separately defined form of grand theft, and clarifies that the
elements of cargo theft are the same as other specified forms of
grand theft as defined in the Penal Code.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Provides that every person who steals, takes, or carries away
cargo of another, when the cargo taken is of a value in excess
of $400 is guilty of grand theft. [Penal Code Section 487h
(a).]
2)Defines "cargo" as any goods, wares, products, or manufactured
merchandise that has been loaded into a trailer, railcar, or
cargo container, awaiting or in transit. [Penal Code Section
487h (b).]
3)Defines "grand theft" as any theft where the money, labor, or
real or personal property taken is of a value exceeding $400,
or when the property is taken from the person of another.
[Penal Code Section 487(a) and (c).]
4)Provides that notwithstanding the value of the property taken,
grand theft is committed in any of the following cases [Penal
Code Section 487(b)]:
a) When domestic fowls, avocados, or other farm crops are
taken of a value exceeding $100;
b) When fish or other aquacultural products are taken from
a commercial or research operation that is producing that
product of a value exceeding $100;
c) Where money, labor or property is taken by a servant or
employee from his or her principal and aggregates $400 or
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more in any consecutive 12-month period; and,
d) When the property is taken from the person of another;
or, when the property taken is, among other things, an
automobile, horse or firearm.
5)Provides that if the grand theft involves the theft of a
firearm, it is punishable by imprisonment in state prison for
16 months, two years or three years. In all other cases,
grand theft is punishable by imprisonment in county jail for
not more than one year or in the state prison for 16 months,
two years or three years. (Penal Code Section 489.)
6)Provides that theft in other cases is petty theft. (Penal
Code Section 488.)
7)States that petty theft is punishable by a fine not exceeding
$1,000, or by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding
six months; or both. (Penal Code Section 490.)
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS :
1)Author's Statement . According to the author, "SB 24 will
permanently establish 'cargo' as a category under grand theft
for purposes of accurately tracking the offense at
California's ports to obtain Homeland Security dollars. The
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) estimates that this type
of theft costs the United States $12 billion dollars each
year; 42% of the nation's total container-cargo enters through
the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles - California requires
a larger portion of federal security money.
"Before AB 1814 (2004), which set today's standard, when cargo
was stolen from a trailer, rail car, or storage container at
the ports, the crime had no automatic classification.
Depending on the circumstances surrounding the theft the
action would be classified as burglary, robbery, larceny,
grand theft, or a number other felony charges. This lack of
coherency made it difficult to itemize how much money was
being stolen from our ports. Four years later, the Los
Angeles County Sheriff's Office has received approximately $6
million for their special investigative detail, the Cargo
Criminal Apprehension Team, or 'Cargo Cats'. Between 2006 and
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2008, the 'Cargo Cats' recovered more than $56 million in
theft. Further, this legislation has been so successful other
states have emulated it. The FBI is even considering tracking
cargo theft in its Uniform Crime Report.
"In short, California's law enforcement needs this bill to
permanently establish cargo theft - not as a new - but as a
separate reportable crime for the purposes of data
collection."
2)Background . Since September 11, 2001, California ports
invested millions of dollars in port security and there was a
need to capture federal funds to help defray the escalating
costs of these improvements. Without the ability to properly
track crimes committed at the ports, California would continue
to struggle in capturing federal monies for port security.
There was a need to create a specific code section for cargo
theft in order to facilitate the tracking of grand theft
committed at ports.
AB 1814 (Oropeza), Chapter 515, Statutes of 2004, created a
specific statute providing that the theft of cargo of a value
in excess of $400 is grand theft. This new law contained a
sunset date of January 1, 2010. This bill merely deletes the
sunset date and makes this statute permanent in order to more
easily track grand theft at California's ports
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department (Sponsor)
California District Attorneys Association
California Peace Officers" Association
California Police Chiefs Association
California State Sheriffs' Association
City of Costa Mesa
Harbor Association of Industry and Commerce
LAX Coastal Chamber of Commerce
League of California Cities
Long Beach Police Officers Association
Sheriff, Alameda County
Sheriff, Butte County
Sheriff, El Dorado County
Sheriff, Inyo County
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Sheriff, Shasta County
South Bay Association of Chambers of Commerce
Opposition
None
Analysis Prepared by : Gregory Pagan / PUB. S. / (916)
319-3744