When you hear of vandalism, you might be quick to think of bored or misguided teenagers defacing property. However, it is a serious crime codified under PEN 594 and encompasses several behaviors that anyone, including adults, can commit. A guilty verdict for vandalism results in severe penalties, including monetary fines, probation, and jail time. So, when charged with an offense in Los Angeles, do not hesitate to call Leah Legal Criminal Defense Attorney to protect your rights and help you contest the charge for a fair verdict.
Vandalism Legal Definition
Under California Penal Code 594, vandalism refers to the malicious damaging, destroying, or defacing of property by a party who does not own the property or has the rightful owner’s consent to access it. When the damage is less than $400, the offense is a misdemeanor. Conversely, if the damage exceeds $400, the offense is a wobbler, and the prosecutor files the offense as a wobbler felony.
People can be quick to assume that vandalism is a minor offense, often committed by young people who are prosecuted in the juvenile justice system. Nevertheless, the offense encompasses several activities that you might not think of until you are faced with charges for the same. These activities include:
- Breaking the television you co-own with your wife during an argument
- Smashing the windshield of your spouse’s car that you co-own
You face the charges despite the existing ownership interest in the vandalized property. Another example of vandalism is inscribing your name or initials in city property, like a wet pavement.
Several incidents could lead to PEN 594 violation charges when you least expect them. Therefore, you should understand the crime, the phrases used, and the elements to avoid a violation in the future or build solid defenses for an active charge.
Vandalism Elements
Vandalism is defined by three crucial elements that the prosecutor must demonstrate beyond a reasonable doubt to obtain a conviction. These elements are:
You, the Defendant, Maliciously Defaced, Damaged, or Destroyed Another Party’s Property
The prosecutor must show that you defaced someone else’s property using graffiti or other inscription, or destroyed or damaged property. Acting maliciously means your wrongful actions were deliberate, or when you committed the offense, you had the unlawful motive of annoying or injuring another party. The law does not require the prosecutor to show that your actions were intended to contravene the law. Therefore, when you damage or deface property by accident, you are not guilty.
For instance, Jane goes out for drinks with coworkers after work one Friday. After drinking all night, Jane drives home under the influence and smashes into the neighbor’s house while trying to park the vehicle. While Jane is guilty of DUI, her act of destroying the neighbor’s house was accidental, eliminating any criminal liability for vandalism.
PEN 594 emphasizes defacing, destroying, or damaging property using graffiti or inscribed material. By this, the law means any unauthorized writings, figures, marks, words, or designs that are marked, drawn, etched, painted, or written on real property, such as land, a home, or a building, or on personal property, such as a vehicle or household furniture. Therefore, whenever you put any kind of unauthorized writing on someone’s property using any tool, your actions qualify as defacing using graffiti.
Additionally, the inscription does not have to be permanent. Even writing a word on a hotel’s glass with a removable marker pen amounts to vandalism. Your actions were deliberate and defaced the hotel’s glass, a property belonging to the hotel.
In addition to the use of graffiti, other activities that qualify as vandalism are:
- Keying your partner’s vehicle after an argument as revenge
- Slashing your former spouse’s car tires
- Spray-painting a footbridge or highway
- Breaking into your home or someone else’s home
You did not Own the Property, or It Belongs to Someone Else
The prosecutor must show that the property did not belong to you, the defendant, or that you did not have the owner’s consent. The law applies when the property in question does not belong to you. For instance, when you vandalize public property, the law assumes you are not the owner or that you lacked consent to act.
However, it is crucial to mention that there are instances in which you will face the charges even when you have ownership interests in a property. If you have joint ownership of the vandalized property, your actions will amount to a violation of PEN 594. Therefore, your spouse or business partner can accuse you of vandalism when you damage jointly owned property.
For instance, a couple is involved in a bitter child custody case and cannot agree on who should have full custody after the divorce. One night after a fight over the issue, the wife throws rocks at the windows of their matrimonial home. Even though the couple has joint ownership of the house, the wife could still face vandalism charges, as PEN 594 applies even in cases of joint ownership.
The Level of Damage was Below $400 or Above $400
Vandalism is filed as a misdemeanor or wobbler, depending on the value of the defacement. When you face misdemeanor charges, the prosecutor should prove that the cost of repairing the damage will be $400 or less. However, for a wobbler felony charge, the prosecutor should demonstrate that the cost of repairs or damages exceeds $400.
In this fashion, vandalism is the same as several theft crimes, where the prosecutor determines the type of charge contingent on the value of the property stolen. Furthermore, when you vandalize two separate properties with the same motive to injure or annoy an individual, the court will not treat these as separate offenses. They will add the cost of repairing the two to determine the preferred charge. If the value exceeds $400, they will level felony charges against you. Apart from the level of defacement, another factor that determines the charge you will face is your criminal record.
A felony charge by the prosecution does not always translate to a felony sentence. The court can find the fact that you intentionally defaced property that did not belong to you to be true. However, they may differ with the prosecutor on the level of defacement. If the court or jury believes the defacement amount does not exceed $400, they will convict you of a misdemeanor and not felony vandalism, regardless of the prosecutor’s preferred charge. This can happen when you are accused of vandalism on multiple properties with the same intent, thereby treating the separate incidents as a single offense.
Although cars are categorized under personal property under this statute, malicious defacement or damage of a vehicle is charged as a separate offense under Vehicle Code 10853.
California Vandalism Penalties
The penalties you will face after the court convicts you of vandalism vary depending on your case’s unique circumstances.
Misdemeanor Vandalism Legal Penalties
When the level of defacement is less than $400, vandalism is a misdemeanor offense. When found guilty of the charge, the legal penalties you will face include:
- At most twelve months of jail confinement
- A monetary court fine not exceeding $1,000. Nevertheless, the court will increase your fine to $5,000 if you have been found guilty of vandalism in the past.
- Misdemeanor probation
Summary probation is the best punishment you can secure because it does not involve jail time. Instead, you must serve a probationary term of 36 to 60 months and adhere to strict requirements, including:
- No more than 24 months of driving privileges suspension. If you have yet to be issued a driver’s license, your eligibility for the permit will be delayed by 12 to 36 months.
- Participation in community labor, including cleaning, repairing, and replacing defaced property in person.
- Being responsible for ensuring that the property you were convicted of vandalizing is free of unauthorized inscriptions for 12 months.
The specific terms of your probationary term will vary contingent on the facts of your case.
Felony Vandalism Penalties
A PEN 594 violation becomes a wobbler when the damage exceeds $400. It means the prosecutor can level felony or misdemeanor charges depending on your case’s unique circumstances and criminal record. A wobbler misdemeanor conviction attracts the following penalties:
- At most twelve months of jail incarceration
- No more than $10,000 in court fines or at most $50,000 if the defacement level is at least $10,000.
- Misdemeanor probation
The penalties of a wobbler misdemeanor are more stringent than those of a standard misdemeanor.
Conversely, when the court convicts you of a felony PEN 594 violation, the legal penalties you will face include:
- Formal or felony probation with a mandatory jail term of no more than 12 months or 16, 24, or 36 months of jail incarceration.
- Monetary court-imposed fines of at most $10,000 or no more than $50,000 in court fines when the cost of repairing the defacement or damage exceeds $10,000.
- Felony probation
If you have at least two prior vandalism convictions resulting in probation or a jail sentence, a subsequent conviction will lead to mandatory jail or prison confinement.
Penalties When the Level of Graffiti Defacement is At Most $250
The prosecutor can only charge you with vandalism under PEN 594 when the value of the defacement is $250 or above. If the damage value or cost of repairs is less than $250, malicious defacement of property using graffiti becomes a lesser offense under PEN 640.5 and 640.6 (California graffiti statutes).
Charges under the graffiti laws attract less strict penalties. The type of charge and subsequent penalties depend on whether you have a prior record for graffiti or a PEN 594 violation conviction.
If you have no prior record of vandalism, a violation of PEN 640.5 and 640.6 is an infraction. A guilty verdict only attracts a monetary fine of no more than $1,000 plus community hours. However, you cannot serve a jail sentence for the offense.
Nevertheless, if you have been previously found guilty of vandalism under PEN 594, PEN 640.5, or PEN 640.6, and the cost of repairing the defacement in the current graffiti charge is less than $250, the prosecutor files the violation as a misdemeanor. However, the misdemeanor penalties under PEN 594 are steeper than those under PEN 640.5 and 640.6. The penalties of a misdemeanor graffiti law violation include:
- At most, half a year of county jail confinement
- A court-imposed fine of at most $2,000
- Community hours in addition to or instead of jail confinement or court fines
If you have at least two prior convictions for violating vandalism statutes resulting in a jail sentence or probation, a third or subsequent conviction under PEN 640.5 and 640.6 is a misdemeanor, but it attracts steeper penalties. The penalties include:
- At most twelve months of county jail incarceration
- Monetary court fines of at most $3,000
- Participation in community labor in place of or on top of jail confinement or payment of court fines.
Legal Penalties for Other Forms of Vandalism
Vandalism involves diverse activities, some of which are not discussed under PEN 594. Therefore, it is possible to face these charges under different subsections of the law. The penalties you face depend on the type of vandalism you are accused of committing, as follows:
Vandalism of a Place of Worship
Subsection 594.3 of the California Penal Code outlines the penalties for vandalizing a place of worship, such as a temple, mosque, church, or other place of worship. A violation of this law is a wobbler, regardless of the level of defacement.
If the prosecutor files the offense as a misdemeanor and the court finds you guilty, the penalties upon conviction include:
- At most twelve months of county jail confinement
- At most $1,000 in court fines
- Misdemeanor or summary probation instead of jail confinement
As a felony, a violation of PEN 594.3 upon conviction attracts the following:
- 16, 24, or 36 months of jail incarceration
- No more than $10,000 in court fines
- Felony or formal probation
You face charges under this section if you maliciously deface the place of worship using graffiti to annoy. However, if the prosecutor can prove that you damaged or destroyed the place of prayer to intimidate those who worship because of their religious beliefs, your vandalism activities qualify as hate crimes. As a result, the prosecutor will file the offense as a felony.
Maliciously defacing a mortuary or cemetery under PEN 594.35 also attracts the same penalties as a PEN 594.3 violation.
Use of Caustic Chemicals to Vandalize Property
Per PEN 594.4, it is a wobbler offense to utilize caustic chemicals, such as butyric acid, to damage or destroy property maliciously. The type of charge you face does not depend on the cost of repairing the damage. A misdemeanor conviction for this offense is punishable by at most half a year of jail confinement or court fines of at most $1,000. Conversely, a felony conviction attracts a sentence of sixteen, twenty-four, or thirty-six months of jail confinement, or a court fine of no more than $10,000.
Highway or Freeway Vandalism
Defacing or destroying a highway is codified under PEN 640.7 and 640.8. Per the statute, any act of vandalism on or near a freeway is a misdemeanor. Upon conviction, the penalties you could face for the violation include:
- At most six months of jail incarceration for a first-time offender and no more than 12 months of imprisonment for a second-time offender.
- At most $1,000 in court fines when you vandalize a highway or $50,000 for freeway vandalism.
Dismissing a Vandalism Conviction
It is possible to expunge your vandalism conviction record if you were sentenced to probation after conviction. Your defense attorney can file for expunction once you complete the probationary term or the court grants an early probation termination upon request. If you were serving formal probation after a felony vandalism conviction, your attorney must first request the court to reduce the felony sentence to a misdemeanor, as one cannot dismiss a felony conviction. If the court grants your request, it will set aside the conviction and update your record to reflect a dismissal.
Although this will not seal your record, a dismissed conviction makes it easier to secure a job, professional license, or property lease. Therefore, speak to your attorney to find out if you qualify for expungement so that you can start the process and release yourself from some of the collateral consequences of a conviction.
Fighting Vandalism Charges
Vandalism can sound like a minor offense associated with young, bored minds. However, the truth is, it is a serious violation that anyone can face and whose conviction carries severe penalties. Therefore, when you are arrested or charged with a violation, your first step should be to hire an experienced property crimes attorney to help you understand your charges and rights. Additionally, a seasoned attorney will investigate the facts of the case and build strong defenses that they will effectively use to secure a favorable outcome. The standard legal defenses your defense attorney can apply, based on the circumstances of your case, include:
Asserting that Your Actions were Not Malicious
The defacement, destruction, or damage to property using graffiti must be intentional or have malice for your actions to amount to vandalism. Therefore, if you did not act with illegal intent, like to annoy or injure, your actions were an accident, eliminating criminal liability for vandalism. You can claim that you defaced the property by accident.
Arguing it was an accident is an effective defense because the prosecutor is the party that bears the burden of proof. They must prove your actions were malicious or that you intended to deface the property, which requires them to show your state of mind when the incident occurred. Proving a person’s state of mind can be challenging and typically relies on circumstantial evidence, which is easy to contest or cast doubt on.
You are Falsely Accused
Your spouse can falsely accuse you of vandalism after a fight or during a bitter divorce case to seek revenge or gain an advantage in an ongoing case. Vandalism accusations can also come from a jealous or angry business partner. Typically, the accuser destroys the property you jointly own and then reports you to the authorities as having vandalized the property. If you are not well represented in court, you could end up with a wrongful conviction.
Nevertheless, with a competent defense attorney on your side, you can argue that someone else committed the offense but wants you to take the blame. Your attorney must uncover what transpired and explain the motives that could have led the accuser to falsely accuse you. Additionally, they can use an alibi to show that you could not have committed the offense because you were not in the location when the alleged violation happened.
You were Misidentified
You may face false allegations of vandalism due to mistaken identity. Your attorney can argue that you fit the physical description of the offender, but you did not commit the crime. Also, the attorney can say that you were in a group of young people who defaced property with graffiti, but you did not engage in the illegal act.
Lastly, the attorney can argue that the eyewitness or property owner wrongfully blamed you for having damaged their property, even though you did not.
You had Approval from the Property Owner
The law requires the prosecutor to prove that when you engaged in vandalism activities, you did not have consent from the owner. Therefore, you can contest the charges by arguing that the property owner gave you permission to inscribe material or graffiti on their property, and that your actions are therefore not illegal.
Offenses Related to Vandalism
Several crimes can be charged alongside or in place of vandalism. These include:
- Domestic violence
- Trespass
- Burglary
- Arson
Find a Seasoned Property Crimes Defense Attorney Near Me
Vandalism cases are nuanced. You need to understand the offense, its elements, legal penalties, and possible defenses to craft solid legal defenses. At Leah Legal Criminal Defense Attorney, we understand California vandalism laws and will guide you through the case for a charge reduction or dismissal. Call us today at 213-444-7818 to understand your charges and protect your rights and freedom in Los Angeles, CA.
