This California penal codes list walks through the statutes people ask about most: the classification rule in Penal Code 17, the violent and property offenses that dominate criminal filings, the arrest and search sections that govern how police can act, and the post-conviction relief statute that lets many people clean up their records. Each entry gives the code number, what conduct it covers, and the penalty range attached to it.
How California Sorts Every Crime
Penal Code 17 draws the dividing lines. A felony is any crime punishable by death or state prison. Everything else is a misdemeanor, unless the statute specifically calls it an infraction.1California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 17 – Crime Classifications
- Infractions bring a fine and no jail time. No criminal record attaches.
- Misdemeanors carry up to six months in county jail and a fine up to $1,000 by default, though individual statutes set higher ceilings. Battery, for example, allows a fine up to $2,000. A misdemeanor does go on your record and can include probation or community service conditions.2California Legislative Information. California Penal Code 19
- Felonies bring prison terms over one year, served in state prison or, for lower-level felonies under realignment, county jail. When the statute sets no specific fine, a judge can impose up to $10,000. A felony also strips certain civil rights, including the right to possess a firearm.3California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 6724California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 29800
Wobblers
Some offenses can be charged either way. A prosecutor picks the initial charge, and a judge can later reduce a wobbler felony to a misdemeanor at sentencing, during probation, or after the case closes.1California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 17 – Crime Classifications Grand theft, domestic violence causing injury, and second-degree burglary are common examples.
Crimes Against Persons
Murder — Penal Code 187
Murder is the unlawful killing of another person with malice aforethought. It is always a felony. First-degree murder, which covers premeditated killings and killings during certain felonies, carries 25 years to life. Second-degree murder carries 15 years to life. Special circumstances such as multiple murders or killing a peace officer can push the sentence to life without parole.
Robbery — Penal Code 211
Robbery is taking property directly from someone’s person or immediate presence through force or fear.5California Legislative Information. California Code Penal Code 211 The confrontation is what separates robbery from theft. First-degree robbery covers offenses inside inhabited buildings, against transit passengers, or against someone using an ATM. Everything else is second-degree.
Kidnapping — Penal Code 207
Kidnapping is moving another person a substantial distance by force or fear. Simple kidnapping carries up to eight years in state prison, rising to 11 years if the victim is under 14. Aggravated forms, including kidnapping for ransom, during a carjacking, or with intent to commit a sex offense, can bring life with the possibility of parole.6California Legislative Information. California Code Penal Code 207
Assault — Penal Code 240
Assault is an attempt to use violent force with the present ability to do so. No contact is needed; swinging and missing counts. Simple assault is a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in county jail and a fine up to $1,000.7California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 241 – Assault Punishment Assault with a deadly weapon or against a peace officer becomes a wobbler or felony with much higher exposure.
Battery — Penal Code 242
Battery is the willful and unwanted use of force against another person. Even minimal contact qualifies.8California Legislative Information. California Code Penal Code 242 Simple battery is a misdemeanor with up to six months in county jail and a fine up to $2,000.9California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 243 – Battery Punishment Battery causing serious bodily injury is a wobbler.
Domestic Violence — Penal Code 273.5
Inflicting a physical injury that leaves a visible wound or traumatic condition on a spouse, former spouse, cohabitant, co-parent, or dating partner is a wobbler. Felony penalties run two, three, or four years in state prison; misdemeanor exposure tops out at one year in county jail. Either way, the fine can reach $6,000. A repeat offense within seven years of a prior violent conviction raises the felony range to two, four, or five years and the fine ceiling to $10,000.10California Legislative Information. California Code Penal Code 273.5
Property and Theft Offenses
Petty Theft — Penal Codes 484 and 488
Penal Code 484 defines theft broadly; Penal Code 488 says any theft that isn’t grand theft is petty theft.11California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 488 The practical threshold is $950 or less. Petty theft is a misdemeanor with up to six months in county jail and a fine up to $1,000.12California Legislative Information. California Code Penal Code 490
Grand Theft — Penal Code 487
Grand theft applies when the property is worth more than $950, is a firearm or automobile, or is taken directly from another person’s body.13California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 487 – Grand Theft It’s a wobbler. Felony sentences run 16 months, two years, or three years in state prison. Grand theft of a firearm is always a felony at the same range.
Burglary — Penal Codes 459 and 460
Burglary is entering a building, locked vehicle, or other structure with intent to commit theft or any felony inside.14California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 459 – Burglary Nothing has to be taken; the crime is complete the moment you cross the threshold with that intent. Penal Code 460 splits it into two degrees: first-degree covers inhabited dwellings, and second-degree covers everything else.15California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 460 – Burglary Degrees First-degree residential burglary is always a felony carrying two, four, or six years in state prison. Second-degree burglary is a wobbler with up to one year in county jail as a misdemeanor.16California Legislative Information. California Code Penal Code 461
Receiving Stolen Property — Penal Code 496
Knowingly buying, hiding, or holding property you know was stolen is a separate crime from the theft. It’s a wobbler, but when the stolen property is worth $950 or less and you have no qualifying priors, the charge is a misdemeanor capped at one year in county jail.17California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 496 – Receiving Stolen Property
Arrest Rules
Warrantless Arrest by Police — Penal Code 836
An officer can arrest you without a warrant in three situations: the officer sees you commit any offense, you have already committed a felony (even outside the officer’s presence), or the officer has probable cause to believe you committed a felony.18California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 836 For misdemeanors, the officer generally must witness the offense. Domestic violence is the main exception: an officer with probable cause to believe you committed battery against a spouse, cohabitant, or dating partner can arrest you without seeing it happen, and officers are required to arrest anyone they believe has violated a domestic violence protective order.
Citizen’s Arrest — Penal Code 837
A private person can arrest someone for any offense committed or attempted in their presence, or when a felony has actually been committed and they have reasonable cause to believe that person did it.19California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 837 If no felony actually occurred, the arrester faces civil exposure for false imprisonment. In domestic violence calls where officers decline to arrest, they are required to inform victims of the right to make a citizen’s arrest.
Search Warrants and Warrantless Searches
Grounds for a Search Warrant — Penal Code 1524
A judge can issue a search warrant on probable cause that the search will turn up specific evidence. Common grounds include stolen property, items used to commit a felony, evidence tending to show a felony occurred or identifying who committed one, property held with intent to use it in a crime, and firearms at the scene of a domestic violence incident involving threats or physical assault. The statute lists further grounds covering child exploitation evidence, firearms held by prohibited persons, and electronic communications records.20California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 1524
When Police Can Search Without a Warrant
Several established exceptions to the Fourth Amendment warrant requirement come up often in California cases:21Legal Information Institute. Exceptions to Warrant Requirement
- Consent. You voluntarily agree, and you can withdraw consent at any time.
- Search incident to arrest. After a lawful arrest, officers can search you and the area within your immediate reach.
- Vehicle searches. Probable cause to believe a vehicle contains evidence of a crime allows a warrantless search.
- Plain view. If an officer is lawfully present and sees contraband or evidence in the open, no warrant is needed to seize it.
- Exigent circumstances. Waiting for a warrant would risk destruction of evidence, escape, or danger to someone’s life.
- Terry stops. Reasonable suspicion allows a brief detention and pat-down for weapons.
Miranda Warnings During Custodial Interrogation
Once you are in custody and officers want to question you, they must first tell you four things: you have the right to remain silent, anything you say can be used against you, you have the right to an attorney, and if you cannot afford one, an attorney will be appointed for you. The exact wording isn’t required, but the substance is.22Constitution Annotated. Miranda Requirements
If you invoke silence or ask for a lawyer, questioning must stop, and officers cannot resume unless you start talking again on your own. Statements obtained in violation of Miranda are generally inadmissible at trial, though the case itself doesn’t get dismissed on that basis alone.
Clearing a Conviction — Penal Code 1203.4
California statutes don’t use the word “expungement,” but Penal Code 1203.4 provides a functional equivalent: a court-ordered dismissal. If you completed probation successfully, or a judge decides you deserve relief anyway, you can petition to withdraw your guilty plea and have the case dismissed.23California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 1203.4
To qualify, you must have finished probation (or been discharged early), and you cannot currently be serving a sentence, on probation, or facing new charges. Certain offenses are excluded, including specific sex crimes against minors and some Vehicle Code violations.
If you were convicted of a misdemeanor and never placed on probation, Penal Code 1203.4a lets you petition one year after sentencing, provided you completed your sentence and stayed out of trouble.24California Legislative Information. California Code Penal Code 1203.4a
A dismissal releases you from most penalties and disabilities tied to the conviction, which matters for job applications and professional licensing. One thing it does not do: restore firearm rights lost to a felony conviction. The Penal Code 29800 prohibition survives a 1203.4 dismissal.4California Legislative Information. California Code PEN 29800