A robbery offense, in California, happens when you feloniously take another person’s property from their possession, the control of another person, or from another person’s immediate presence. This happens against the person’s will, and can be accomplished through fear, force, or violence. It is a serious felony offense, punishable by a lengthy prison sentence and a hefty fine.
The legal definition of robbery includes all the elements of the offense, which a prosecutor must prove beyond a reasonable doubt to get a conviction. It helps to understand these elements and prepare well for your defense to avoid the severe penalties and consequences of a robbery conviction.
The Elements of Robbery Offense Under PC 211
The legal meaning of robbery comprises the various facts of the crime that the DA must prove at trial for a court to render a guilty verdict. These elements include the following:
- That you took possession of another person’s property
- The owner or another person was in possession of that property
- You took possession of the property from its owner, another person, or from their immediate presence
- Your actions were against the person’s will
- You used force, fear, or violence to forcefully take possession of the property to prevent the person from fighting or resisting
- By using violence, force, or fear, to take someone else’s property, your intention was to deprive them of the property permanently or temporarily, but for enough time for the person to be deprived of a significant value of the property
In criminal cases, the prosecutor has the burden of proof. This means that they must prove all elements of the case beyond a reasonable doubt for a court to give a guilty verdict. In this case, the DA must prove all six elements of this crime to prove that you are guilty of robbery. If they cannot prove one or some of the elements beyond a reasonable doubt, the court will likely dismiss your charges.
Thus, if you are charged with robbery, take time to understand all these elements. This helps you plan your defense well. You can weaken the prosecutor’s case by creating loopholes or undermining their evidence. You can also counter the prosecutor’s case using credible evidence, especially if one or more of the elements are untrue.
Here is a detailed explanation of these elements, to ensure you understand the crime better:
Taking Another Person’s Property
You can take another person’s property by gaining possession of it or by moving it from one location to another, regardless of the distance. Being in possession of someone’s property does not mean merely touching or holding it. You are in possession of a property when you have the right or control over it.
Possession can be actual, constructive, or joint. Actual possession is when you have direct control over the property. The property is usually in your immediate presence, whether in your hands, pockets, or in something you are carrying. Constructive possession is when the property is not in your direct presence, but you have control over it. It can be in your home, your vehicle, or your personal locker. Joint possession is when you control the property in conjunction with another person or people.
When prosecuting robbery cases, the prosecutor only needs to prove that you took control over another person’s property, whether you were in actual, constructive, or joint possession of the property. This means you can still face robbery charges even if the police cannot find the property on your person or property. What is important is that you have control over the property, regardless of its location.
Taking Property From Another Person, or Another Person’s Immediate Presence
This is one of the elements that distinguishes robbery from other theft-related crimes. A robbery happens when you take someone else’s property straight from the owner or another person, or from their immediate presence.
This means you could have taken the property from someone else’s hands, pockets, vehicle, house, locker, or any other place close to the victim. The immediate presence of a person means that, even if the property was not in the victim’s hands, it was within their direct control. This means that the victim would have continued to control the property had the robbery not occurred.
Taking Property Against the Owner’s Will
Robbery happens against the property owner’s will. This means that the owner does not consent to your actions. A person gives consent to an action if they understand what you are doing or what will happen after the action.
Thus, if you use a gun to force a person, and the person runs away, leaving their property behind, and then you take possession of that property, you are guilty of robbery. The person did not agree to your taking possession of the property, even if they knew or should have reasonably known your intentions.
The Use of Fear, Force, or Violence
This is also another element that distinguishes robbery from other theft crimes. Robbery is mainly carried out through fear, force, or violence. Using force to rob means physical force to gain possession of another person’s property. Using fear means you caused the victim to experience reasonable fear for their safety, the safety of their loved ones, the safety of the property, or the safety of another person who was there during the robbery.
If you drug a victim with the intention of taking possession of their property, you will also have committed robbery. The law considered drugging or incapacitating a victim an unusual type of fear or force.
Exception: Pickpockets do not usually use fear or force to steal from their victims. Instead, they use a harmless touch that results in a loss. This means that pickpocketing is not a robbery offense. However, a pickpocket can be charged with petty or grand theft, depending on the value of the property stolen.
The Intent to Deprive Property Owner
Finally, the district attorney must prove that you had specific intent when committing a robbery, which is to deprive the property owner of their property permanently or temporarily, but for a considerable period. If your intention was to keep the property for a temporary period, the DA must prove that you intended to deprive the property owner of a significant value or portion of enjoyment of that property.
Thus, the court can only give a guilty verdict in your case if your case demonstrates an intent to steal through fear, force, or violence. If the intent to steal or deprive the owner of their property is not there, it will be difficult for the prosecutor to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt.
Example: Sammy gets into a brawl with Neil. After the altercation, Sammy decides to take Neil’s expensive watch to teach his opponent a lesson. Note that this is an afterthought, and not something that Sammy intended from the start. Thus, it is not a robbery, but can be charged as theft.
The Possible Penalties of Robbery Under California Law
If you are arrested and charged with robbery, and the prosecutor proves all the elements of the offense beyond a reasonable doubt, the court will give a guilty verdict. The penalties you receive during sentencing will depend on your exact robbery charge. In California, PC 213 lists two robbery charges: first-degree robbery and second-degree robbery.
A first-degree robbery charge happens under the following circumstances:
- Your victim of robbery was a passenger or driver in a taxi, streetcar, cablecar, public bus, subway, trackless trolley, or any other transportation for hire
- You committed a robbery in an occupied home, trailer, or boat
- You committed a robbery when the victim was using an ATM or just about to use an ATM
An occupied house or structure means that someone was living there and was either present at the time of the robbery or had just left and intended to return soon.
A first-degree robbery is usually the most severe robbery charge under California law. It is a felony, punishable by 3, 4, or 6 years in prison, felony probation, and $10,000 in court fines.
Note: If you commit robbery in the first-degree in an occupied home or structure and are in concert with one or multiple people, the judge will enhance your sentence to 3, 6, or 9 years.
A second-degree charge happens when you commit a robbery, but the details of your case do not meet the legal definition of a first-degree robbery. It is also a felony offense, punishable by 2, 3, or 5 years in prison, felony probation, and $10,000 in court fines.
When Multiple Victims are Involved
A robbery involving one victim is one count. If it involves multiple victims, the counts are determined by the number of victims and not the number of stolen properties. Thus, if you use fear, force, or violence against two people to rob one or both, you will face two counts. However, if you rob multiple items from a single person, you will face charges for a single count.
Sentencing Enhancements in Robbery Cases
The judge can increase your penalties for robbery in case there are aggravating factors in your case. Aggravating factors make your actions more severe or increase your culpability. Therefore, they make your conviction more severe, resulting in more severe charges.
For example, the judge can enhance your sentence under Penal Code 12022.7 if your actions during a robbery cause a person to sustain a significant bodily injury. This can result in an additional 3 to 6 years to the underlying prison sentence.
You could also be subject to sentencing enhancement if you use a gun to commit a robbery, under PC 12022.52. In this case, you could receive an additional ten years to your sentence for using a gun, an additional twenty years for deliberately firing a firearm during a robbery, or 25 years or life imprisonment for seriously injuring or killing a person using a gun during a robbery.
Robbery as a Strike
A robbery conviction can affect your future sentences because it is a strike under the Three Strikes Law. Generally, violent felonies count as strikes, and they affect your subsequent sentencing for strikes. A first strike is punished as recommended by the law, but a second and third strikes attract stiffer sentences.
If you have one strike on your criminal record, your sentence will be twice the sentence provided under the law for the second strike. If you have two prior strikes on your record, the judge will sentence you to 25 years or life in prison for the third strike.
Defending Yourself Against Robbery Charges
A robbery conviction results in life-changing penalties and consequences. However, you can fight your charges during the trial to cause the court to drop or reduce your charges. An experienced criminal defense lawyer can help you with this. They can negotiate with the prosecutor for a favorable plea deal, counter the prosecutor’s allegations with evidence, or create loopholes in the prosecutor's case. Remember that if the prosecutor cannot prove all elements of your case beyond a reasonable doubt, the court cannot give a guilty verdict.
Here are some of the defense strategies that can help:
There was No Force, Fear or Violence Against the Victim
Robbery is primarily carried out through fear, force, or violence. If you take another person’s property from their person or immediate presence, but do not use fear or force to obtain the person’s consent, you are not guilty of robbery. However, you could be guilty of another theft-related crime, which the prosecutor will decide based on the exact details of your case.
When reporting your crime to the police, the alleged victim could have reported that you intimidated them into giving consent. However, just because a person feels intimidated does not necessarily mean that you used force, fear, or violence against them.
This defense strategy can work very well if the prosecutor cannot prove that you used fear or force to commit the robbery. In most cases, prosecutors rely on surveillance videos or eyewitness accounts to prove the nature of a crime. In the absence of such evidence, your experienced attorney can confidently cite that no force, fear, or violence was used to take another person’s property from their possession or immediate presence. If this works, the court will dismiss your charges.
You Had an Honest Belief You Were The rightful Owner of the Property
You can be accused of robbery for taking something you reasonably believe belongs to you or should be in your possession. This can happen if the other person resists, and you use physical force against them. However, this does not make you guilty of robbery. If you believe that you had the right to the property and you claimed that right, you were not in the wrong.
However, your experienced attorney must demonstrate this belief to convince the court to dismiss your charges. They must explain to the court why you thought or believed that you have the right to take that property from the alleged victim.
However, if you use violence or a deadly weapon to claim your right to a property, you could be charged with a crime. Also, this defense strategy does not work if you use force or fear to take someone else’s property to settle a debt.
You Are Mistakenly Accused
Mistaken identities are very common, especially when a crime happens at night or too fast for a victim to identify the perpetrator. The victim relies on their fading memory to describe the alleged perpetrator to the police, who, in turn, use the description to apprehend the perpetrator. You can be mistakenly arrested if you have the same physical description as the alleged perpetrator.
Your experienced attorney can review the prosecutor’s case to determine its basis. If the prosecutor relies mainly on circumstantial evidence and does not have solid evidence that you committed the crime, they can create loopholes in the case. This could make it difficult for the prosecutor to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt. When this happens, the court will dismiss your charges.
You Are Falsely Accused
It is very common to face false accusations for a serious felony like robbery. This can happen if the alleged victim is someone who wants you to be punished for a crime you did not commit. They can do this out of jealousy, or to get even with you for what you did or failed to do.
However, a competent defence attorney can fight a false accusation using evidence. They can use your alibi or forensic evidence to prove that you did not commit the crime.
Find Experienced Criminal Defense Services Near Me
If you or someone you love is facing robbery charges in Los Angeles, understanding the legal definition and potential penalties is important for planning your defense. An experienced defense attorney can help you with that.
At The Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney, we can also help you determine the best defense strategies for a favorable outcome. We will guide you through all complex legal processes and fight for your rights. Call us at 310-564-2605 to know more about your charges and our services.
