Most people assume grand theft means a big number. It often does. But under California Penal Code 487, you can be charged with grand theft for a $300 item if it came out of someone’s pocket, for a $260 load of almonds from an orchard outside Shafter, or for any firearm at any price. What is grand theft in California, then, is really four questions, and the answer to each one changes what the DA can file and how much time is on the table.
The four doors into grand theft
Penal Code 487 makes theft “grand” in four situations. You only need to fit one.
| Door | What it covers | Section |
|---|---|---|
| Value | Money, labor, or property worth more than $950 | PC 487(a) |
| Special property | Farm crops, livestock or fish worth more than $250; or an employee taking $950 or more from an employer over any 12-month period | PC 487(b) |
| From the person | Anything taken directly off someone’s body or out of their hands, such as a phone lifted from a back pocket, at any value | PC 487(c) |
| Cars and guns | Any automobile or any firearm, at any value | PC 487(d) |
The second door is the one that matters most in Kern County. The $250 threshold for crops, nuts and livestock is lower than the general $950 line because agricultural theft was written into the statute as its own problem. Someone who drives off with a few hundred dollars of pistachios from a Wasco orchard is facing grand theft, not petty theft.
Theft itself, under Penal Code 484, means taking property that belongs to someone else with the intent to keep it from them permanently, or long enough to deprive them of most of its value. It covers taking by stealth, by trick, by false promise, and by embezzlement, meaning you were trusted with the property and converted it. The “grand” label comes from PC 487. The way it was taken comes from PC 484.
Grand theft vs. petty theft
If none of the four doors applies and the property is worth $950 or less, the charge is petty theft under Penal Code 490.2. That is a misdemeanor, with up to six months in county jail. The exceptions: a prior conviction for a super-strike offense, or a sex-offender registration requirement, lets the DA file petty theft as a felony.
Two things erase the comfort of the $950 line.
First, aggregation. Under Penal Code 490.3, added by Prop 36 in 2024, the DA can add up the value of separate thefts into one grand theft count. Penal Code 487(e) goes further: related acts, even against different victims or in different counties, can be combined if they were driven by one plan. Three $400 thefts from three stores in one week can be charged as one $1,200 grand theft.
Second, repeat petty theft. Under Penal Code 666.1, two or more prior theft convictions turn a new petty theft into a wobbler. That is not grand theft, but it carries the same felony exposure.
What grand theft is punished with
Grand theft is a wobbler, meaning the DA can file it as a misdemeanor or a felony. The one exception is a firearm, which is always a felony.
| Case | Charge level | Jail or prison | Fine |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grand theft, misdemeanor | Misdemeanor | Up to 1 year county jail | Up to $1,000 |
| Grand theft, felony | Felony | 16 months, 2 or 3 years, usually served in county jail under PC 1170(h) | Up to $10,000 |
| Grand theft of a firearm | Felony only | 16 months, 2 or 3 years in state prison | Up to $10,000 |
| Grand theft auto | Wobbler | Same as grand theft | Up to $10,000 |
Those figures come from Penal Code 489 and the general fine statute, Penal Code 672. The old idea that grand theft carries a $5,000 fine is wrong; that number applies only to livestock theft under PC 487a.
Grand theft of a firearm is also a serious felony under Penal Code 1192.7(c)(26), which makes it a strike. Ordinary grand theft is not a strike, no matter the value.
Probation is the usual outcome for a first offense. Felony probation normally runs two years, but Penal Code 1203.1(l)(2) allows up to three years for felony grand theft, embezzlement or false financial statements over $25,000. A missed restitution payment or a new arrest during that time is a probation violation with its own hearing.
Misdemeanor or felony: who decides
The DA decides first, based on the value, your record, whether there was a victim who lost something they could not replace, and whether you cooperated. The judge gets a say too. Since January 1, 2026, under Assembly Bill 321, the judge can reduce a wobbler to a misdemeanor at any time before trial, on the defense’s motion or the court’s own. A second request needs changed circumstances, so the first one should be prepared carefully, with restitution paid or arranged if at all possible.
Enhancements that add years
A few add-ons can turn a two-year case into a much longer one. They attach only to felony convictions.
- Large losses. Penal Code 12022.6 adds one year if the loss exceeds $50,000, two years over $200,000, three years over $1 million, and four years over $3 million. This is what turns an embezzlement case at a Bakersfield business into a multi-year sentence.
- Acting with others. Penal Code 12022.65 adds one, two or three years when the theft was committed in concert with two or more other people.
- Retail orders. Under Penal Code 490.8, a judge sentencing you for theft from a store must consider an order barring you from that store, or the whole chain, for up to two years.
Defenses that come up
Which one fits depends on how the property changed hands.
- No intent to permanently deprive. You borrowed the truck, or meant to return the equipment. Intent is an element the DA has to prove.
- Claim of right. You believed in good faith the property was yours, or you were owed it. A contractor who takes back materials from a job the client never paid for has a real argument, even if it fails.
- Consent. The owner let you have it, and only later called it theft after a falling out. Common in family and business disputes.
- Value is wrong. The DA’s number decides the charge. A used phone is not worth its retail price, and a crop is not worth the top market rate on a bad day. Getting the valuation right can move a case from grand to petty theft.
- Mistaken identity or weak evidence. Theft cases often rest on one witness or one grainy camera.
Grand theft cases in Kern County
Felony and misdemeanor grand theft cases in Bakersfield are heard at the Kern County Superior Court Metropolitan Division at 1415 Truxtun Avenue. Kern County also has a dedicated unit for this: the Sheriff’s Office Rural Crime Investigation Unit, which works crop, livestock, fuel and farm equipment thefts from Buttonwillow to Arvin, and has used electronic surveillance on bait equipment to make arrests. If the property was farm equipment, crops, or livestock, expect the case to be worked as a felony from the start.
Restitution matters more in theft cases than almost any other kind. A judge who sees that the owner has been made whole, before the plea, is far more open to a misdemeanor or diversion. That is usually the first conversation a theft crime attorney in Bakersfield has with a new client.
Quick answers
How much money is grand theft in California?
More than $950 for most property. But crops, livestock and fish are grand theft over $250, and anything taken from a person, any car, and any gun is grand theft at any value.
Is grand theft a felony in California?
It can be. Grand theft is a wobbler, so the DA can file it as a misdemeanor (up to one year in county jail) or a felony (16 months, two or three years). Grand theft of a firearm is always a felony.
Can grand theft be dismissed or expunged?
A misdemeanor grand theft can qualify for diversion under Penal Code 1001.95. After a conviction and completed probation, a dismissal under Penal Code 1203.4 is available for most cases, which is the process people call expungement in California.
What is the difference between grand theft and robbery?
Robbery adds force or fear. Taking a wallet from an unattended bag is grand theft from the person. Taking it by threatening someone is robbery, which is a violent felony and a strike.
Talk to a Bakersfield theft defense attorney
Whether a grand theft case ends in a felony record, a misdemeanor, or a dismissal is usually decided before the first court date: what the valuation says, whether restitution is in hand, and how the priors are pleaded. If you have been accused of grand theft in Kern County, contact the Law Office of David L. Faulkner for a free consultation. We will tell you which of the four doors the DA is relying on and what it will take to close it.
