NRS § 205.270 defines the Nevada crime of larceny from a person. This is stealing property directly from the person of another, without his or her consent, but (in contrast to robbery) without using force or threats.
Larceny from a person is a category C felony, punishable by
- one to five years in Nevada State Prison,
- restitution to the victim, and
- a possible fine of up to $10,000.
Unlike robbery, larceny from a person is stealing without violence or threat of force.
NRS 205.270 states that:
1. A person who, under circumstances not amounting to robbery, with the intent to steal or appropriate to his or her own use, takes property from the person of another, without the other person’s consent, is guilty of a category C felony and shall be punished as provided in NRS 193.130.
2. In addition to any other penalty, the court shall order the person to pay restitution.
3. The court shall not grant probation to or suspend the sentence of any person convicted of violating subsection 1 if the person from whom the property was taken has any infirmity caused by age or other physical condition.
In this article, our Las Vegas criminal defense attorneys discuss:
The secret unlawful taking of property of another person from a person’s body is a category C felony.
1. Elements
Larceny from a person is the legal term for pick-pocketing. Unlike robbery (NRS 200.380), pick-pocketing is stealing personal property from another person without:
- force,
- violence, or
- fear of injury
Pick-pocketing typically occurs without the victim being aware that they are being stolen from. Victims usually do not realize what happened until later when they find their money or property is missing.1
An example of larceny from a person is you slipping your hand in a woman’s purse and taking her phone without her consent or knowledge.
2. Penalties
As a category C felony, the crime of larceny from a person carries one to five years in Nevada State Prison (not county jail). However, the judge can grant probation unless the victim had an infirmity (such as being in a wheelchair or being intellectually disabled).
If you are convicted of pick-pocketing, you also have to pay back the victim the value of the property stolen. In addition to the restitution payment, the judge can impose a criminal fine of up to $10,000.
If you are initially charged with robbery, the prosecutor may offer a plea bargain where you plead guilty to larceny from a person. This is a decent plea deal to accept because robbery carries two to fifteen years in prison, which is harsher than the sentence for larceny from a person.2
NRS 205.270 makes pick-pocketing a crime.
3. Defenses
The best defense always turns on the specific facts of each case. Eight potential defenses to Nevada criminal charges of larceny from a person include:
- You owned the property that you took.
- You did not take any property from anyone.
- You had the person’s consent to take the property.
- You had no intent to steal or appropriate the person’s property or cash for your own use.
- You were falsely accused by the alleged victim or someone else.
- You were misidentified, such as during a line-up at the police department.
- Law enforcement found the allegedly stolen property through an illegal search or seizure.
- You were entrapped by police officers.3
Depending on the case, the district attorney may agree to reduce your pick-pocketing charge down to petit larceny (NRS 205.240), also called petty theft or petty larceny. Only a misdemeanor, a petit larceny offense is typically charged in shoplifting cases where you steal items worth less than $1,200.
Common evidence in property crime cases includes eyewitness testimony, video surveillance footage, and the alleged stolen property itself. As with every criminal case under Nevada state law, prosecutors have the burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
4. Record Seals
Nevada convictions for larceny from a person can be sealed from your criminal record five years after the case has ended.
If the charge gets reduced to petit larceny, the record seal waiting time is only one year after the case ends.
If the charge gets totally dismissed, then you can petition for a record seal immediately.4
Additional Reading
For more in-depth information, refer to these scholarly articles:
- Extracting the pickpocketing information implied in the built environment by treating it as the anomalies – Cities.
- Detecting Pickpocketing Gangs on Buses with Smart Card Data – Intelligent Transportation Systems Magazine.
- Force in Robbery – The Journal of Criminal Law.
- A Case Control Study: White-Collar Defendants Compared With Defendants Charged With Other Nonviolent Theft – Journal of American Academy of Psychiatry Law.
- Robbery Re-assessed – Criminal Law Journal.
Legal References
- Nevada Revised Statute 205.270; NRS 200.380. See also Ibarra v. State, (2018) 426 P.3d 16, 134 Nev. Adv. Rep. 70. Young v. State (2003) 139 Nev. Adv. Op. 20.
- Same. Prior to July 1, 2020, the penalties turned on the market value of the property. Larceny from a person amounting to less than $3,500 was a category C felony. Otherwise, larceny from a person was a category B felony carrying one to 10 years and up to $10,000 in fines. Nevada AB 236 (2019).
- See also Miller v. State, (2005) 121 Nev. 92, 110 P.3d 53, 121 Nev. Adv. Rep. 10.
- NRS 179.245; NRS 179.255.