Without a paper trail, a person caught with a converter may be charged, fined between $1,000 and $5,000, and do possible jail time.
MURRIETA, CA — The Murrieta City Council Tuesday will consider an ordinance identical to one passed nearly a year ago by the Riverside County Board of Supervisors intended to crack down on catalytic converter thieves by establishing specific regulations and penalties lacking under state law.
“The theft of catalytic converters has been an increasing problem throughout Southern California in recent years, with the city of Murrieta experiencing at least six thefts per month,” according to a statement posted to the council agenda for Tuesday. “The purpose and intent of this ordinance is to curb the theft of converters throughout the city.”
Council members are slated to conduct an initial hearing on the proposal, Ordinance No. 606-24, and if approved, it would return for a second reading and final approval next month.
The measure is identical to one approved by the county Board of Supervisors for application throughout unincorporated communities in September 2023.
The principal proponents of the county ordinance, Supervisors Kevin Jeffries and Yxstian Gutierrez, noted that catalytic converter theft was among “the fastest growing crimes in the country.”
There were nearly 400 converter thefts countywide in 2023, roughly double the number in 2022, according to public safety officials.
Catalytic converters are used to filter emissions to cut down on the volume of pollutants discharged by cars and trucks. They’re located within a vehicle’s exhaust system and average about $1,200 apiece. Components include metals like palladium, platinum and rhodium, which command per-ounce prices ranging from $1,000 to $14,000. Thieves take the converters to scrap metal dealers and sell them.
The Murrieta ordinance would make it a misdemeanor offense to unlawfully possess a catalytic converter detached from a vehicle. A person caught with one would have to provide “verifiable valid proof of ownership,” or risk facing criminal charges.
Bills of sale, auto body shop documents indicating that the converter was removed by owner consent, email messages between the possessor and previous owner showing there was an agreement to relinquish the device, pictures of the vehicle from which the converter was removed and other evidence would be required to establish appropriate possession under the ordinance.
Without that paper trail, a person caught with a converter may be charged, slapped with fines between $1,000 and $5,000, as well as possibly do time in county jail.
Similar measures are in effect in San Bernardino County and municipalities in the region, including Eastvale and Upland.
Local law enforcement officials have supported specific regulatory action aimed at converter thefts because of what they’ve described as an absence of clear state provisions that address the activity.
