California Penal Code 215 PC states in part that:

“Carjacking is the felonious taking of a motor vehicle in the possession of another, from his or her person or immediate presence, or from the person or immediate presence of a passenger of the motor vehicle, against his or her will and with the intent to either permanently or temporarily deprive the person in possession of the motor vehicle of his or her possession, accomplished by means of force or fear.”

In order to convict you of carjacking, the prosecutor must prove:

1. a person had possession of a car,
2. you took that car from his/her immediate presence (or from the passenger’s immediate presence),
3. against his/her will by force or fear, and
4. with the intent to deprive that person of that car either permanently or temporarily.

Carjacking is a felony, punishable by probation and up to one year of county jail, or three, five or nine years in the California state prison and a maximum $10,000 fine.

Note that you face this punishment for EACH victim that is present in the car at the time of the carjacking.

In addition to these penalties, there are a variety of sentencing enhancements that are applicable to carjacking such as if you:

1. injure a victim,
2. use a gun,
3. commit the offense for the benefit of a gang , or
4. kidnap an individual during the carjacking.

Also, carjacking is a strike under California’s three strikes law, which means that you must serve at least 85% of your sentence before you will be eligible for parole.

California takes offenses involving carjacking very seriously and you need an aggressive California criminal defense attorney who knows how to defend a person from these charges. William Daley is an experienced criminal defense and San Diego DUI lawyer with over thirty years of experience defending his clients and getting their charges reduced or dismissed. Call THE LAW OFFICE OF WILLIAM DALEY at (619) 238-1905 to set up a free 30 minute consultation today!