AB 657

Current law prohibits a person from obtaining without payment

telecommunications service and from obtaining without payment video service. A

person who violates either prohibition for the first time is subject to a Class C

forfeiture. Under this bill, a person who violates either prohibition for the first time

is guilty of a Class C misdemeanor.

Under current law if a person who incurs injury as a result of theft of

telecommunications service, commercial mobile service, video service, or satellite

cable programming prevails in a civil suit against the person who committed the

theft, the court must grant the injured person actual damages, costs, and

disbursements. The court is not permitted to grant attorney fees unless the person

who committed the theft did it willfully and for commercial advantage or was

previously convicted for the same violation. This bill permits the court to grant

reasonable attorney fees for a first violation without regard to commercial

advantage.

Because this bill creates a new crime or revises a penalty for an existing crime,

the Joint Review Committee on Criminal Penalties may be requested to prepare a

report concerning the proposed penalty and the costs or savings that are likely to

result if the bill is enacted.