On Friday’s broadcast of Newsmax TV’s “The Record,” Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman vowed punishment to the fullest extent of the law for looters in the wake of the California fires but stated that the looting statute that is triggered by an emergency declaration in an area lacks the teeth of ordinary grand theft or burglary statutes, but “we anticipate that if these people are caught and arrested for looting, the full panoply of crimes that can be assessed against them will.”

Host Greta Van Susteren asked, “Is looting a specific crime or is it a theft, basically, and we use the term looting? In California, is looting a specific crime with a specific penalty?”

Hochman responded, “Once an emergency area has been designated by the governor or the county, it actually triggers the looting statute. The looting statute, though, doesn’t, ironically, have as much teeth as your ordinary grand theft or burglary statutes do. So, the looting statute, however, cannot be a cite and release statute. So, we anticipate that if these people are caught and arrested for looting, the full panoply of crimes that can be assessed against them will.”

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