---
title: "California Vehicle Code 10851 VC: Unlawful Taking or Driving of a Vehicle"
description: "California defense attorneys explain VC 10851, joyriding penalties, the grand theft auto distinction, and how Prop 47 really applies."
url: "https://www.thehfirm.com/penal-codes/vc-10851-unlawful-taking-or-driving-a-vehicle"
site: "H Law Group"
---

# California Vehicle Code 10851 VC: Unlawful Taking or Driving of a Vehicle

California defense attorneys explain VC 10851, joyriding penalties, the grand theft auto distinction, and how Prop 47 really applies.

Topics: VC 10851, Joyriding, Vehicle Theft, Grand Theft Auto, Criminal Defense, California Vehicle Code

If you took a car, truck, or motorcycle that wasn't yours, even if you meant to bring it back, you can still be charged with a crime in California. [Vehicle Code 10851](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=VEH&sectionNum=10851) covers exactly that situation. Most people know it by its street name, joyriding, but the charge doesn't require anyone to have fun. Borrowing your ex's car without asking, driving off in a rental after your agreement lapsed, or taking a friend's truck to move something and never returning it can all trigger a 10851 charge.

The statute makes it a crime to take or drive someone else's vehicle without the owner's consent, when you intend to deprive the owner of possession of it for any period of time, whether that's an hour or forever. That last part is what confuses most people and what this page is here to clear up, because it's also the difference between a 10851 charge and grand theft auto.

## Joyriding versus grand theft auto: the difference that matters

[Grand theft auto, charged under Penal Code 487(d)(1)](/penal-codes/pc-487-grand-theft-over-950), requires proof that you intended to permanently deprive the owner of the vehicle. You took the car planning to keep it, sell it, strip it, or otherwise make sure the owner never got it back.

VC 10851 doesn't require that. Prosecutors only have to prove you took or drove the vehicle without consent and intended to deprive the owner of it for any length of time, even a few hours. That's why a teenager who takes a parent's car for a joyride and returns it before morning can still be charged under 10851, even though nobody would call that grand theft.

This lower bar is also why prosecutors often prefer VC 10851 over PC 487(d)(1): it's easier to prove. They don't have to get inside your head about what you planned to do with the car long term, just that you took or drove it without permission and meant to keep it from the owner, however briefly.

## Penalties for a VC 10851 conviction

VC 10851(a) is a wobbler, meaning the prosecutor can file it as either a misdemeanor or a felony depending on your record and the facts of the case.

- Misdemeanor: up to one year in county jail, a fine of up to $5,000, or both at the court's discretion.
- Felony: 16 months, 2 years, or 3 years in county jail under Penal Code 1170(h), plus a fine of up to $5,000.

Two things push a 10851 case toward harsher treatment. First, under VC 10851(b), taking or driving certain vehicles, an ambulance responding to a call, a marked law enforcement or firefighting vehicle, or a vehicle specially equipped and plated for a person with a disability, carries a straight felony sentence of 2, 3, or 4 years and a fine of up to $10,000, if you knew or reasonably should have known what kind of vehicle it was.

Second, if you have a prior felony conviction for vehicle theft, including a prior 10851, a grand theft auto conviction, or a 496d conviction, Penal Code 666.5 kicks in. That statute treats you as a repeat offender, takes probation off the table in most circumstances, and sets the felony range at 2, 3, or 4 years in state prison.

## Why proposition 47 doesn't work the way people expect

Proposition 47 reduced many low-value theft and drug offenses to misdemeanors, and people charged with 10851 often assume the same $950 threshold automatically applies to their case. It's more complicated than that, and the complication comes down to which theory the prosecutor uses to charge you.

The California Supreme Court addressed this directly in People v. Page (2017) and again in People v. Bullard (2020). VC 10851 can be violated two different ways, by taking a vehicle, or by driving a vehicle that someone else already stole. The Supreme Court held that a taking, whether you intended to keep the car permanently or just for a while, must be treated as a misdemeanor under Penal Code 490.2 if the vehicle was worth $950 or less, unless the conviction rests on a post-theft driving theory instead.

That carve-out for post-theft driving matters. If the facts show you were caught driving a vehicle after someone else took it, rather than taking it yourself, the case stays a wobbler regardless of what the car was worth. In practice, this gives prosecutors a real incentive to build a driving-theory case where the facts allow it, since that route sidesteps the Prop 47 misdemeanor floor entirely. If you're facing a 10851 charge and the vehicle was worth less than $950, whether the DA charged a taking or a driving theory can decide whether you're looking at a misdemeanor or a felony.

## Common defenses to a VC 10851 charge

- Consent: if the vehicle's owner gave you permission to drive it, even permission that was informal, implied, or given once before, that can defeat the charge on its own. Consent on a prior occasion doesn't automatically carry forward to a later one, so this defense works best when there's actual evidence of consent for the specific incident charged.
- Good-faith claim of ownership: a reasonable belief that you owned the vehicle or had a legal right to possess it defeats the intent element. This comes up in disputes between co-owners, family members, or business partners where ownership was genuinely unclear.
- Lack of intent to deprive: someone who moved a car a few feet in a parking lot to get their own vehicle out, without ever intending to drive off with it, hasn't committed the crime the statute describes.
- Weak identification evidence: these cases often rely on witness identification, surveillance footage, or circumstantial evidence tying a particular person to a particular vehicle, and that evidence is often worth challenging closely.

## Related charges: PC 496d and PC 487(d)(1)

[Penal Code 496d](https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=PEN&sectionNum=496d) punishes buying, receiving, concealing, selling, or possessing a vehicle you knew or should have known was stolen. It's also a wobbler, with the same misdemeanor exposure as 10851 and the same felony range. The key distinction is that 496d targets what you did with a vehicle after someone else already stole it, while 10851 targets the taking or driving itself. Prosecutors frequently charge both for the same vehicle to cover their bases, but you can't be convicted of both for that same car.

Penal Code 487(d)(1), grand theft auto, requires the higher intent standard discussed above: intent to permanently deprive the owner of the vehicle. It's also a wobbler, but a felony conviction is more likely to draw a longer sentence and carries more weight in later proceedings, since it's classified as a theft crime rather than an unlawful taking, which matters for prior-conviction enhancements and immigration consequences.

## Frequently asked questions

### Is joyriding the same as grand theft auto?

No. Joyriding under VC 10851 only requires intent to deprive the owner of the vehicle temporarily, while grand theft auto under PC 487(d)(1) requires intent to permanently deprive the owner of it. The two statutes overlap, but they're charged and defended differently.

### Can I be charged with 10851 if I returned the car?

Yes. Returning the vehicle doesn't erase the charge. VC 10851 only requires that you took or drove the car without consent and intended to deprive the owner of it for some period of time, and returning it afterward doesn't undo that intent at the moment of the offense.

### Will a VC 10851 conviction show up as a strike?

A standard VC 10851 conviction is not automatically a strike under California's Three Strikes law. It can factor into sentencing on future offenses through Penal Code 666.5 if you're convicted of vehicle theft again, and a felony conviction on your record carries its own consequences for employment, housing, and immigration status regardless of strike classification.

### Does Proposition 47 automatically reduce my charge to a misdemeanor?

Not automatically, and not in every case. Whether Prop 47 applies depends on the vehicle's value and, critically, on whether the prosecution is proceeding on a taking theory or a post-theft driving theory.

### What's the difference between 10851 and 496d if I'm accused of driving a stolen car?

If you're accused of driving a vehicle you knew was stolen, prosecutors can charge that under either statute, or both, depending on the facts. The practical difference often comes down to which theory is easier for the prosecution to prove and which one benefits you more at sentencing.

## Where this leaves you

A VC 10851 charge sits in an odd spot in California law. It sounds less serious than grand theft auto, and in some ways it's easier to defend since the prosecution's burden on intent is different, but it's also easier for prosecutors to prove, which is why it gets charged so often. Whether your case ends up as a misdemeanor or a felony can turn on details that aren't obvious from the police report alone, including which legal theory the DA relies on and how that interacts with Proposition 47. If you're facing this charge, get the specific facts of your case in front of a criminal defense attorney before you talk to anyone else about what happened.

## Related California penal codes

- [PC 496 - Receiving Stolen Property](https://www.thehfirm.com/penal-codes/pc-496-receiving-stolen-property)
- [PC 487 - Grand theft (over $950)](https://www.thehfirm.com/penal-codes/pc-487-grand-theft-over-950)

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