News

Oct 19, 2023

Catalytic convertor bill fails due to Assembly punishment concerns

San Joaquin County Sheriff Pat Withrow just wanted members of the California

San Joaquin County Sheriff Pat Withrow just wanted members of the California State Assembly to see how severe the impacts of catalytic converter theft can be.

And while his trip to Sacramento last week to advocate for a bill proposed by Assemblymember Carlos Villapudua that would have given law enforcement more tools to stamp out the prevalent crime fell short of generating the desired result – the bill failed to make it out of committee for a full floor vote – Withrow isn't giving up just yet.

During his monthly address to constituents posted last week on the San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office Facebook page, Withrow – who acknowledged it was the first video he had posted in a number of months – talked openly about Assembly Bill 2398 and the way that California's current law ties the hands of law enforcement officials.

"It's kind of a difficult situation that we’re in right now in law enforcement because of catalytic converter thefts – they are decimating our communities as well as the rest of our state and our nation," Withrow said. "It's out of control and we know how impactful this is but it's a very difficult time to prosecute because technically it's not a crime to have a cutoff catalytic converter in your car.

"If we catch people with those, we want to send it to the DA, the DA can't file on it because they can't prove which car it came from."

While a catalytic converter is often something that most people don't ever think of, the California-required component – which is used to help curb vehicle emissions – contains trace amounts of precious metal that make them valuable to recyclers.

For thieves with the right tools, a catalytic converter can be cut off and stolen in less than a minute.

Those unlucky enough to find out that they’ve been the victim of catalytic converter theft – oftentimes by starting their car and hearing straight exhaust – are also finding that the theft can take their vehicles out of commission for an extended period. With a shortage of replacement units and a shortage of available rental cars, losing transportation can be disastrous to residents – something that Withrow said he wished that the assembly considered before making its decision last week.

If approved, AB 2398 would have amended sections of the Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act – also known as Proposition 47 – to make possession of a detached catalytic converter by anyone other than the rightful owner or authorized agent a crime.

"Unfortunately, they did not want to move the bill forward – they were concerned about additional punishment, I think, for the offenders," Withrow said. "I wish they would have been more concerned about the victims of these crimes and how devastating they can be for people in our community to lose their cars and the expense of trying to repair that."

Withrow encouraged residents to reach out to their local elected officials to advocate for AB 2398 and reform for existing laws that tie the hands of police in prosecuting catalytic converter thieves.

To contact reporter Jason Campbell email [email protected] or call 209.249.3544.