Penal Code § 594.3 PC – Vandalizing a Religious Building

California Penal Code 594.3 PC makes it a crime to vandalize a place of worship or a cemetery. This offense can be charged as a misdemeanor carrying up to 1 year in jail, or a felony carrying up to 3 years in prison.

But if the defendant allegedly defaces a religious space or graveyard as a hate crime in order to intimidate others from religious expression, then a PC 594.3 violation is always a felony.

The full text of the statute reads as follows:

594.3. (a) Any person who knowingly commits any act of vandalism to a church, synagogue, mosque, temple, building owned and occupied by a religious educational institution, or other place primarily used as a place of worship where religious services are regularly conducted or a cemetery is guilty of a crime punishable by imprisonment in a county jail for not exceeding one year or imprisonment pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170.

(b) Any person who knowingly commits any act of vandalism to a church, synagogue, mosque, temple, building owned and occupied by a religious educational institution, or other place primarily used as a place of worship where religious services are regularly conducted or a cemetery, which is shown to have been a hate crime and to have been committed for the purpose of intimidating and deterring persons from freely exercising their religious beliefs, is guilty of a felony punishable by imprisonment pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170.

(c) For purposes of this section, “hate crime” has the same meaning as Section 422.55.

Legal Analysis

It is against California law knowingly to ransack, trash, or otherwise vandalize a:

• church,
• synagogue,
• mosque,
• temple,
• building owned and occupied by a religious educational institution,
• other place primarily used as a place of worship where religious services are regularly conducted, and/or
• cemetery¹

Vandalism comprises not only damage to the building itself. It also includes damage to any personal property and fixtures inside the building, such as pews, bibles, or furniture.²

A PC 594.3 violation is a wobbler, meaning the prosecutor can press charges as either a misdemeanor or a felony. As a misdemeanor, vandalizing a place of worship carries up to one year in jail and up to $1,000 in fines, plus restitution. As a felony, the potential penalties include incarceration for either:

• 16 months,
• 2 years, or
• 3 years

In addition, the court can impose up to $10,000 in fines plus restitution.

Note that vandalism of a religious building is always a felony if the defendant committed it as a hate crime in order to deter people from exercising their freedom of religion.³

Learn more about California vandalism laws (PC 594).

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Legal References