For most of us, Christmas is a time of giving. For thieves, though, it is a time of taking. At some point between December 6th and 8th, about 100 Christmas trees were stolen from the Green Thumb nursery in Newhall.
According to the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff Station deputy Josh Dubin, “The value and amount of trees stolen classifies this crime as grand theft.”
In California, grand theft is defined as: “The unlawful taking of someone else’s property, when said property is worth more than $950, OR the property is a car or firearm, OR when property is taken directly from the owner,” (such as a mugging).
In this case, the estimated value of the trees is $3,000, much more than the $950 bottom line required for a crime to be classified as grand theft.
Depending on the details of the crime, grand theft can be charged as either a misdemeanor or a felony. So, when the detectives in Santa Clarita make an arrest, the suspect(s) could be facing anywhere from one year in county jail to a possible three years in State Prison.
Either way, the detectives have their work cut out for them. No other Christmas tree thefts have been reported in the area, and it appears that the thieves cut holes in the fence and took the trees in the middle of the night when nobody was there.
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