CALCRIM No. 1551. Arson Enhancements (Pen. Code, §§ 451.1, 456(b))

Judicial Council of California Criminal Jury Instructions (2023 edition)

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1551.Arson Enhancements (Pen. Code, §§ 451.1, 456(b))

If you find the defendant guilty of arson [as charged in Count[s]

], you must then decide whether[, for each crime of arson,] the

People have proved (the additional allegation that/one or more of the

following additional allegations):

•[The defendant intended to obtain monetary gain when (he/she)

committed the arson.]

•[(A/An) (firefighter[,]/ peace officer[,]/ [or] emergency worker)

suffered great bodily injury as a result of the arson.]

•[The defendant caused great bodily injury to more than one

person during the commission of the arson.]

•[The defendant caused multiple structures to burn during the

commission of the arson.]

•[The arson (caused great bodily injury[,]/ [or] caused an

inhabited structure or inhabited property to burn[,]/ [or] burned

a structure or forest land), and was caused by use of a device

designed to accelerate the fire or delay ignition.]

[A person who is employed as a police officer by <insert

name of agency that employs police offıcer> is a peace officer.]

[A person employed by <insert name of agency that employs

peace offıcer, e.g., “the Department of Fish and Wildlife”> is a peace officer

if <insert description of facts necessary to make employee a

peace offıcer, e.g., “designated by the director of the agency as a peace

offıcer”>.]

[A firefighter includes anyone who is an officer, employee, or member of

a (governmentally operated (fire department/fire protection or

firefighting agency) in this state/federal fire department/federal fire

protection or firefighting agency), whether or not he or she is paid for his

or her services.]

[An emergency worker includes an emergency medical technician. An

emergency medical technician is someone who holds a valid certificate

1103

under the Health and Safety Code as an emergency medical technician.]

[Great bodily injury means significant or substantial physical injury. It is

an injury that is greater than minor or moderate harm.]

[A (structure/ [or] property) is inhabited if someone lives there and either

is present or has left but intends to return.]

[A (structure/ [or] property) is inhabited if someone used it as a dwelling

and left only because a natural or other disaster caused him or her to

leave.]

[A (structure/ [or] property) is not inhabited if the former residents have

moved out and do not intend to return, even if some personal property

remains inside.]

[A device designed to accelerate the fire means a piece of equipment or a

mechanism intended, or devised, to hasten or increase the fire’s

progress.]

[In order to prove that the defendant caused (great bodily injury to more

than one person/ [or] more than one structure to burn), the People must

prove that:

1. A reasonable person in the defendant’s position would have

foreseen that committing arson could begin a chain of events

likely to result in (great bodily injury to more than one person/

[or] the burning of more than one structure);

2. The commission of arson was a direct and substantial factor in

causing (great bodily injury to more than one person/ [or] the

burning of more than one structure);

AND

3. The (great bodily injury to more than one person/ [or the]

burning of more than one structure) would not have happened if

the defendant had not committed arson.]

[You must decide whether the People have proved this allegation for

each crime of arson and return a separate finding for each crime of

arson.]

The People have the burden of proving (this/each) allegation beyond a

reasonable doubt. If the People have not met this burden, you must find

that the allegation has not been proved.

New January 2006; Revised September 2020

CALCRIM No. 1551 ARSON

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BENCH NOTES

Instructional Duty

The court has a sua sponte duty to give an instruction defining the elements of the

sentencing enhancement.

The reference to “arson” in the first paragraph refers to all crimes charged under

Penal Code section 451, including arson of a structure, forest land, or property (see

CALCRIM No. 1515), arson causing great bodily injury (see CALCRIM No. 1501),

and arson of an inhabited structure (see CALCRIM No. 1502). It does not refer to

aggravated arson under Penal Code section 451.5 (see CALCRIM No. 1500).

Give one of the bracketed alternatives, A-E, depending on the enhancement alleged.

If the defendant is charged with a qualifying prior conviction under Penal Code

section 451.1(a)(1), give either CALCRIM No. 3100, Prior Conviction, or

CALCRIM No. 3101, Prior Conviction: Bifurcated Trial, unless the defendant has

stipulated to the truth of the prior conviction.

Give all relevant bracketed definitions, based on the enhancement alleged.

The jury must determine whether the alleged victim is a peace officer. (People v.

Brown (1988) 46 Cal.3d 432, 444-445 [250 Cal.Rptr. 604, 758 P.2d 1135].) The

court may instruct the jury on the appropriate definition of “peace officer” from the

statute (e.g., “a Garden Grove Regular Police Officer and a Garden Grove Reserve

Police Officer are peace officers”). (Ibid.) However, the court may not instruct the

jury that the alleged victim was a peace officer as a matter of law (e.g., “Officer

Reed was a peace officer”). (Ibid.) If the alleged victim is a police officer, give the

bracketed sentence that begins with “A person employed as a police officer.” If the

alleged victim is another type of peace officer, give the bracketed sentence that

begins with “A person employed by.”

Give the bracketed paragraph that begins with “In order to prove that the defendant

caused” if the prosecution alleges that the defendant caused great bodily injury to

multiple people or caused multiple structures to burn. (Pen. Code, § 451.1(a)(5); see

Pen. Code, § 451(a)-(c).)

Give the bracketed sentence that begins with “You must decide whether the People

have proved” if the same enhancement is alleged for multiple counts of arson.

The second sentence of the great bodily injury definition could result in error if the

prosecution improperly argues great bodily injury may be shown by greater than

minor injury alone. (Compare People v. Medellin (2020) 45 Cal.App.5th 519,

533-535 [258 Cal.Rptr.3d 867] [the definition was reasonably susceptible to

prosecutor’s erroneous argument that the injury need only be greater than minor]

with People v. Quinonez (2020) 46 Cal.App.5th 457, 466 [260 Cal.Rptr.3d 86]

[upholding instructions containing great bodily injury definition as written].)

AUTHORITY

• Enhancements. Pen. Code, §§ 451.1, 456(b).

• Device Designed to Accelerate Fire Defined. People v. Andrade (2000) 85

ARSON CALCRIM No. 1551

1105

Cal.App.4th 579, 587 [102 Cal.Rptr.2d 254].

• Peace Officer Defined. Pen. Code, § 830 et seq.

• Firefighter Defined. Pen. Code, § 245.1.

• Emergency Medical Technician Defined. Health & Saf. Code,

§§ 1797.80-1797.84.

• Duty to Define Proximate Cause. See People v. Bland (2002) 28 Cal.4th 313,

334-335 [121 Cal.Rptr.2d 546, 48 P.3d 1107] [in context of firearm

enhancement].

RELATED ISSUES

Discretion to Strike Enhancement

The trial court retains discretion under Penal Code section 1385 to strike an arson

sentence enhancement. (People v. Wilson (2002) 95 Cal.App.4th 198, 203 [115

Cal.Rptr.2d 355] [enhancement for use of an accelerant under Pen. Code,

§ 451.1(a)(5)].)

SECONDARY SOURCES

3 Witkin & Epstein, California Criminal Law (4th ed. 2012) Punishment, § 372.

5 Millman, Sevilla & Tarlow, California Criminal Defense Practice, Ch. 91,

Sentencing, § 91.47 (Matthew Bender).

6 Millman, Sevilla & Tarlow, California Criminal Defense Practice, Ch. 143, Crimes

Against Property, § 143.11[3] (Matthew Bender).

1552-1599. Reserved for Future Use

CALCRIM No. 1551 ARSON

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Page last reviewed May 2023