Phone, electrical, and utility lines are crucial for daily living. People depend on phone lines for communication. Electrical and utility lines keep lives functional. It is crucial to keep all these lines in working condition. Many people's lives are affected if one utility line fails to work. For example, damaged electrical lines can cause injuries, deaths, and significant property damage. That is why the law requires everyone to take good care of phones and electrical and utility cables to ensure everyone’s life moves on smoothly. Damaging a phone, electrical, or utility line is a serious crime. The offense can result in serious criminal charges punishable by lengthy prison time and a hefty court fine.

If you face charges for damaging an electrical, phone, or utility line in Bakersfield, it is advisable to seek the help and guidance of a competent criminal attorney. They will help you understand your charges, navigate the criminal process, and have a solid defense against them. We will also protect your rights at California Criminal Lawyer Group and fight alongside you until you obtain a fair outcome for your case.

The Legal Meaning of Damaging Phone, Utility, or Electrical Lines

Phone, utility, and electrical lines connect us to crucial services needed for daily living. Electricity is the primary source of energy in most homes and businesses. Functional electrical lines ensure everyone receives quality and reliable energy as required. Phone lines keep everyone in open communication, regardless of how far or close you are. Damaged phone lines will make communication difficult or impossible. Remember that everyone relies on communication to relay and receive messages, whether as an individual or business. Utility lines ensure everyone receives crucial commodities, like home or business water.

California has stringent laws against anyone found guilty of damaging electrical, phone, or utility lines. According to PC 591, it is a severe offense to willfully obstruct, remove, disconnect, or damage electrical and telephone wires, cables, or any other equipment connected to those cables. If convicted of a crime like that, you will receive a harsh sentence, including incarceration, payment of a hefty court fine, and a life-altering criminal record.

This offense goes beyond vandalism, even though the crimes are almost similar. According to PC 594, vandalism occurs when you intentionally damage another person’s property, causing them to incur severe financial losses. Even though vandalism is a serious offense, damaging utility, electrical, and phone lines is much more severe. People depend so much on the latter because the latter involves damaging property for communication and daily living. Some people even rely on electrical, utility, and phone lines to earn a living. You can ruin someone’s job, business, or life by committing this crime.

The prosecutor will not be lenient in bringing charges against you for a serious crime like this. The judge will not have mercy when sentencing you. You need quality legal defense services to avoid a conviction and its repercussions. A skilled and experienced criminal attorney can aggressively fight your charges for a case dismissal or charge reduction. They will rest once you obtain a favorable outcome for your case.

But before the court issues the final verdict on your case, the district attorney must prove your case beyond a reasonable doubt. They must satisfy all the elements of this offense, which are the facts of the case. These elements include the following:

  • You damaged, injured, removed, cut, or took down an electrical, telephone, telegraph, or television cable/line. Damaging cables or lines connected to any electrical device is also a criminal offense under this statute.
  • You destroyed or damaged a television cable, telephone line, or any other line that conducts power to a telegraph
  • You acted criminally and willfully

Here are actions that could result in charges under this law:

  • Cutting your neighbor’s cable lines out of revenge for something they did against you
  • Damaging a person’s telephone lines so you can easily break into their home to commit burglary, murder, battery, or assault
  • Messing with another person’s telephone battery to make it impossible for them to communicate

The prosecutor must demonstrate your actions in court to obtain a guilty verdict. They must verify that you damaged, destroyed, or tampered with electrical, utility, or telephone lines. Your reasons for acting that way, however significant they could be, cannot justify your actions. For example,  cutting your neighbor’s telephone lines to stop them from communicating with you and reporting your movements to your ex-partner is still a crime.

The prosecutor must also demonstrate that your actions were willful. Acting willfully means knowing what you are doing and the consequences of your actions. But it does not necessarily mean you intended to harm the alleged victim or commit a crime. Your charges will still apply even if you did not intend to damage the utility, electrical, or telephone line, provided that your actions resulted in the damage.

The prosecutor must also demonstrate that your actions were malicious. Acting maliciously means that you acted illegally and with the intent to hurt another person. Proving that your actions were malicious is crucial for the prosecutor’s case. They must demonstrate that your actions caused or could have caused harm to another person. For example, damaging a company’s electrical cables disconnects them from the source of energy that the company needs for daily operation. Without energy, the company will suffer severe losses, and some people could even lose their jobs.

Possible Penalties for a Conviction Under PC 591

A violation of PC 591 is a wobbler offense, meaning that the prosecutor can file misdemeanor or felony charges against you. The prosecutor’s decision is based on your criminal history and the facts of your case. For example, they will consider your motive, the level of resulting damage, and whether or not there were aggravating factors in your case. If your actions cause someone to suffer severe bodily injuries or death, the prosecutor can file felony charges against you. The same will apply if you have had a previous conviction for the same or similar crime.

The prosecutor will bring misdemeanor charges against you for the simplest form of this offense. When that happens, you will likely face the following penalties upon conviction:

  • Misdemeanor or summary probation
  • One year in jail
  • A court fine of not more than $1,000

If the prosecutor files felony charges against you for damaging electrical, phone, or utility lines, you can face the following penalties upon conviction:

  • Felony or formal probation
  • $10,000 in court fines
  • 16 months, two or three years in jail

A Probation Sentence

Judges issue probation instead of jail time to allow defendants to serve their sentence out of incarceration. The judge decides whether to send a defendant to probation based on the facts of their case and criminal history. If the judge sentences you to probation, you will not serve any of your sentence behind bars. You can return to your family, life, and job/business and remain there for probation.

However, you must abide by the strict probation conditions the judge will set during sentencing. Your probation conditions will depend on the facts of your case. Here are some of the conditions the judge can set for your case:

  • You must remain within the court’s jurisdiction throughout the probation period
  • You must not commit any crime or be arrested for a crime while on probation
  • You must participate in community service
  • You must receive drug and/or alcohol treatment if the judge establishes that your actions were influenced by drugs or alcohol.
  • You must pay all court fines and/or victim restitution.

Misdemeanor probation is usually simpler and shorter than felony probation. It lasts between one and three years. When you are sentenced to misdemeanor probation, the judge places you under the supervision of the court. You must submit period reports to the court to enable the judge to understand how well, or otherwise, you perform. You must not violate your probation. If you do, the judge can revoke your probation and send you back to jail for the required period under the law.

You could be on felony probation for up to five years. The judge will place you under the supervision of the probation department. The department will assign your case to an officer, who will make follow-ups and write reports on how well, or otherwise, you perform on probation. You must meet your probation regularly to update them on your performance. If you violate your felony probation, the judge can revoke it and send you to jail for the required period.

If you perform well on probation, the judge will dismiss your case at the end of your probation period. You will be free to continue your life without having to abide by some conditions. But you will still have a criminal record that could impact several aspects of your life.

The Impact of a Criminal Conviction

A criminal conviction is life-changing. So many things will change once the final verdict on your case is out. You could lose your job, the support of your family and friends, and even your business. Some employers will quickly replace you during the court process. If sentenced to jail for a year or more, you could lose contact with your family and friends. Life is usually not the same again when you reunite with them after serving your time.

A criminal conviction, even for a minor offense, leaves you with a tainted criminal background that impacts your life in many ways. A criminal background is a big deal, even for some family members and friends. Some people will treat you differently because of your criminal past.

People can learn about your criminal past by conducting a simple background check. Unfortunately, criminal records are publicly available; anyone can find out about your history by running a background check. If a potential employer does that, they can deny you a job opportunity because of your past. Landlords are also known to consider potential tenant’s criminal past before renting or leasing to them.

Loss of Gun Rights

Adults in California can obtain a gun permit to purchase or possess a firearm. But the law prohibits some people from buying or owning guns, including convicted felons. If the prosecutor files felony charges against you under PC 591 and the court delivers a guilty verdict, you lose your gun rights. You will not be allowed to possess or purchase guns permanently or for a predetermined period. If you possess a firearm, you must sell it immediately or surrender it to law enforcement after conviction.

Expungement of Your Criminal Record

You will continue to feel the impact of your conviction long after serving your sentence. For example, you can face difficulty finding suitable employment or an ideal place to rent due to your criminal history. But the law allows you to file for the expungement of your criminal record to free yourself from the harmful effects and disabilities of a conviction.

Expungement involves removing a criminal record from your history. An expunged record will no longer appear on your background check. People who conduct a background check on you will not find the record, so they will not treat you according to what they see in your criminal background.

The process of filing for expungement is simple. You must petition the court where you were sentenced to remove the conviction record from your record. You will no longer worry about that particular record if the judge grants your petition.

But you must meet the required criteria for the court to expunge your conviction. You must complete your sentence or probation for that conviction. You must also not be on probation or serving a jail sentence for another offense.

Defending Yourself Against Charges under PC 591

If you face charges for damaging phone, utility, or electrical lines, you could face a severe sentence if the court finds you guilty. Remember that the consequences of your conviction will follow you years after your conviction. Thus, you must put up a solid defense against your charges for a fair outcome. You can do so with the help of an experienced attorney. Your attorney can investigate your case, gather evidence, and use the best legal strategies to fight your charges. Here are some of the ways your attorney can fight your charges and the possible outcomes:

Going for a Plea Deal

Plea deals are prevalent in criminal cases. They could work in favor of the defendant or the prosecution. If the prosecutor does not have sufficient evidence to obtain a guilty verdict, they can propose a plea deal to your defense attorney to close the case. The prosecutor will require you to plead guilty to a lesser offense like vandalism and accept a less-hefty sentence instead of going through a trial. If you agree, your case will go straight to sentencing after the first arraignment. It will save you time and shorten your sentences.

Your attorney can also propose a plea deal to the prosecutor if there is overwhelming evidence against you and you are afraid of the uncertainty of a criminal trial.

Fighting the Prosecutor’s Evidence

If a plea deal is not viable for you and your defense team, your criminal defense attorney can find ways to fight and weaken the prosecutor’s case. Remember that the prosecutor must demonstrate all the elements of the crime for the court to deliver a guilty verdict. If the prosecutor’s case is weak, they will not meet the burden of proof, and the court will rule in your favor. Here are some of the strategies an aggressive defense attorney can use to fight the prosecutor's case:

     1. Demonstrating That Your Actions Were Not Willful

Remember that the law requires you to have acted willfully or deliberately for the court to find you guilty under PC 519. Acting willfully means that your actions were intended or done on purpose. For example, under this statute, you will be guilty if you knowingly vandalized a company’s electrical cables in revenge for an unfair layoff.

Your defense attorney can argue that your actions were merely accidental and not deliberate. For example, if you interfere with the phone lines during your job or when attempting to repair your or someone else’s cables. The judge will dismiss your case if you convince the court that your actions were accidental and not deliberate.

     2. Showing That You Are a Victim of False Allegations

It is not unusual to face charges for a crime you did not commit. A person can lodge a false accusation against you for revenge or to gain an advantage over you. If so, your attorney must find compelling evidence to convince the court that you did not commit the alleged crime. They can use your alibi as evidence to demonstrate that you were not anywhere near the crime scene when the offense happened. They can also use video surveillance evidence to show that someone else and not you committed the crime. If the evidence is overwhelming, the judge will dismiss your case.

     3. Demonstrating That You Did Not Have Malicious Intent

Charges under PC 519 require you to have acted with malicious intent. A malicious intent exists in cases where your actions are criminal and result in or are likely to harm another person. For example, if you damage another person’s communication lines to make it impossible for them to call for help when you attack them or break into their home.

The judge can be a little lenient if you act without malicious intent. For example, if you interfered with a domestic violence victim’s phone to stop them from contacting their abuser in the middle of a court case. If you successfully demonstrate this defense in court, the judge can dismiss your case with a stern warning against the same or similar behavior in the future.

     4. The Police Misconducted Themselves During or After Arrest

An experienced criminal attorney can use this strategy to compel the judge to dismiss crucial evidence against you. The law guides the police on how they must conduct themselves when conducting arrests or investigating crimes. If, at any given time, the officers violated your rights, the judge can rule in your favor during trial. For example, if the arresting officer fails to read your Miranda rights, the judge can dismiss any evidence gathered through questioning without your attorney. That leaves the prosecution with little or no evidence to pursue the case.

Related Charges

The law has several statutes related to damaging phones, electrical, or utility lines. Some of these statutes are:

PC 631: Wiretapping

This law makes it an offense for any person to wiretap another person’s telephone line without the person's consent or legal authorization. In most cases, people who commit this offense do so intending to stalk the other person without the other person’s knowledge. The crime is a wobbler, punishable by a year in jail (if charged as a misdemeanor) or three years for a felony.

PC 594: Vandalism

You are guilty of vandalism when you willfully and maliciously damage another person’s property. You can do so in many ways, including marking, painting, or physically destroying a property. The offense is also a wobbler. The prosecutor decides how to charge you based on your criminal history and the value of the damaged property. If the property value is $400 or less, it is a misdemeanor. If the property value is more than $400, the offense is a felony.

A misdemeanor is punishable by a year in jail, while a felon is punishable by up to three years.

Find a Competent Criminal Lawyer Near Me

Do you or someone you love face criminal charges for damaging a Bakersfield phone, electrical, or utility line?

Hiring a qualified criminal defense lawyer right after your arrest is advisable. That way, they can study the details of your case, gather evidence, and prepare a solid defense for your charges.

At California Criminal Lawyer Group, we aim to streamline your complex legal process and fight for a fair outcome. Our experienced attorneys are always ready and willing to take up your case. We will protect your rights and fight until you are satisfied with the outcome of your case. Call us at 661-750-8230 to discuss your case and our services.