California Penal Code §373a — Public Nuisance After Abatement Notice
PC §373a makes it a misdemeanor for any person to maintain, permit, or allow a public nuisance (as defined by PC §370) to exist upon his or her property or premises — or, if occupying or leasing the property of another, upon that property — after reasonable written notice from a peace officer to remove, discontinue, or abate the nuisance has been served. Exposure is up to 6 months county jail and a $1,000 fine, and each day the nuisance continues after notice is a separate offense — enabling daily-multiplied criminal exposure. §373a is the workhorse statute for LA City Attorney and County Counsel chronic-blight, environmental-violation, and habitability prosecutions.
Reviewed by Daniel S. Rubin, CA Bar 302093 · Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney · Public Nuisance After Abatement Notice Cases in All LA County Courts
01 — Quick Facts
PC §373a — Public Nuisance After Abatement Notice at a Glance
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Full Name | California Penal Code §373a — Public Nuisance After Abatement Notice |
| Code Type | Penal Code (PC) |
| Classification | Misdemeanor |
| Penalty | Up to 6 months county jail + $1,000 fine per day |
| Category | Public Order |
| Probation | Summary — up to 3 years |
| Strike | No |
| Expungeable | Yes — §1203.4 |
| Immigration | Generally not a CIMT |
| Free Consultation | (213) 723-2337 — 24/7 |
01 — What Is PC §373a?
What Is California Penal Code §373a?
PC §373a Reads:
"Every person who maintains, permits, or allows a public nuisance to exist upon his or her property or premises, and every person occupying or leasing the property or premises of another, who maintains, permits or allows a public nuisance to exist thereon, after reasonable notice in writing from a peace officer so to do to remove, discontinue or abate the same has been served upon such person, is guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall be punished accordingly; and the existence of such nuisance for each and every day after the service of such notice shall be deemed a separate and distinct offense."
— California Penal Code §373a
§373a converts a static PC §370 public nuisance into a criminal offense once the property owner or occupant has received written notice from a peace officer to abate. Unlike PC §372 (which reaches any nuisance without notice), §373a requires the written-notice predicate and then multiplies the offense daily for continued non-compliance. Common fact patterns include chronic-blight properties, hoarder residences, illegal dumping sites, unpermitted construction, hazardous vacant lots, and short-term-rental nuisances.
Why This Law Matters
The daily-multiplication feature is the danger: a nuisance that persists 60 days after notice creates 60 separate misdemeanor counts, each carrying up to 6 months jail and a $1,000 fine — cumulative exposure into the tens of thousands. §373a is aggressively used by the LA City Attorney's Neighborhood Prosecutor Program and by County Counsel in nuisance-abatement filings. Rubin Law defends by attacking the notice sufficiency, the abatement-period reasonableness, and the willfulness of continuation.
Official Sources
02 — Elements of the Crime
Elements the Prosecution Must Prove Under PC §373a
The People must prove each element beyond a reasonable doubt.
Public Nuisance Under PC §370
Anything injurious to health, indecent or offensive to the senses, or an obstruction to free use of property, affecting a community or considerable number of persons.
Defendant Owns, Occupies, or Leases the Property
The statute reaches record owners, occupants, and lessees who maintain, permit, or allow the nuisance.
Written Notice From a Peace Officer
Notice must be in writing, from a peace officer, specifying the nuisance and requiring abatement within a reasonable period.
Nuisance Continued After Reasonable Period
Each day the nuisance persists after the abatement period is a separate offense.
04 — Penalties
Penalties for PC §373a Public Nuisance After Abatement Notice in California
Penalty structure and enhancements for this offense.
| Charge | Code | Prison Term | Probation | Strike |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| §373a Base Offense | PC §373a | Up to 6 months county jail + $1,000 fine | Summary — up to 3 years | No |
| §373a Daily Multiplication | PC §373a | Each day = separate misdemeanor | Summary | No |
| Companion §372 | PC §372 | Up to 6 months + $1,000 (no notice required) | Summary | No |
| Civil Abatement | Civ. Code §3491 | Injunctive relief + costs + receivership | N/A | N/A |
Related Enhancements & Charges
Companion H&S §17920.3 Substandard Housing
H&S §17920.3
Cross-charged in habitability cases.
LAMC Building & Safety Counts
LAMC 91.8904
Municipal-code criminal referrals frequently accompany §373a.
Companion PC §594 Vandalism
PC §594
Cross-charged where nuisance involves damage.
Civ. Code §3496 Property Lien
Civ. Code §3496
Nuisance-abatement costs lien recorded against property.
Beyond the Sentence
- Daily multiplication into cumulative tens of thousands in fines
- Civil nuisance-abatement receivership under Civ. Code §3491
- Property-lien recording under Civ. Code §3496
- Loss of Section 8 / HUD subsidy eligibility
- Landlord-side rental-license and ABC consequences
- Coordinated LA City Attorney prosecution frequently packages health-code and building-code counts
Sentencing References
05 — Defense Strategies
How Rubin Law Defends PC §373a Public Nuisance After Abatement Notice Charges
Rubin Law, P.C. defends this offense through the following strategies.
Notice Defects
§373a requires proper written notice from a peace officer specifying the nuisance and a reasonable abatement period. Service errors, ambiguity, non-peace-officer signers, and unreasonable periods defeat the statute.
§373a Notice Element
Not a Public Nuisance (§370)
Private disputes, single-complainant conditions, and de minimis violations fall outside §370's community-scale requirement.
PC §370 Definition
No Knowledge, Capacity, or Control
Absentee owners, tenants without repair authority, and non-record owners lack the maintenance element. Ownership and lease-review analysis is central.
Maintenance Element
Reasonable Abatement Efforts
Weather delays, permit-approval delays, contractor unavailability, and partial abatement all defeat willful continuation.
Willfulness Element
Judicial Diversion (§1001.95)
§373a qualifies for §1001.95 judicial diversion — successful abatement and program completion results in dismissal.
Coordinated Civil Abatement
Where a parallel Civ. Code §3491 abatement exists, coordinated global resolution — abatement plus criminal dismissal — is often achievable.
Civ. Code §3491
Constitutional Sources
07 — Court Process
How PC §373a Public Nuisance After Abatement Notice Cases Move Through Los Angeles Courts
Typical case flow through the LA County courts.
- 1
Step 1 — Code Inspection
LADBS, LAFD, LA County DPH, or similar agency inspects and generates violation report.
- 2
Step 2 — Written Abatement Notice
Peace officer serves written notice specifying the nuisance and abatement period. This is the §373a predicate.
- 3
Step 3 — Filing / Arraignment
If not abated, City Attorney or County Counsel files misdemeanor. Daily-multiplied counts alleged.
- 4
Step 4 — Discovery / Motion Practice
Inspection reports, photographs, service records, and comparative properties. Notice-sufficiency motions and §1001.95 diversion motions.
- 5
Step 5 — Abatement-Focused Negotiation
Most §373a cases resolve through negotiated abatement plans coupled with §1001.95 diversion or dismissal on compliance.
- 6
Step 6 — Sentencing / Diversion Completion
Successful abatement / diversion — case dismissed. Otherwise: summary probation, compliance conditions, fines.
Los Angeles Courts That Handle PC §373a Public Nuisance After Abatement Notice Cases
Filings are venued in the courthouse serving the property location.
Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center
Central LA — City Attorney Neighborhood Prosecutor.
Van Nuys Courthouse East
SFV blight and habitability filings.
East Los Angeles Courthouse
East LA and unincorporated County Counsel filings.
Long Beach Courthouse
Long Beach code-enforcement prosecutions.
Pasadena Courthouse
Pasadena / San Gabriel Valley code cases.
Reviewed by Your Attorney
Daniel S. Rubin — Los Angeles Public Nuisance After Abatement Notice Defense Attorney
Daniel S. Rubin has defended clients charged with public nuisance after abatement notice and related offenses in Los Angeles County courts — including Clara Shortridge Foltz, Van Nuys, Compton, and Pomona. He understands that these cases are won in the details: the suppression hearing that eliminates key evidence, the preliminary hearing cross-examination that exposes a weak witness, the penalty phase argument that keeps a client out of the worst outcome.
This page was written and reviewed by Daniel A. Rubin, Los Angeles criminal defense attorney, CA State Bar 302093, with 10+ years of experience defending clients charged under PC §373a in Los Angeles County. Last reviewed: July 2026.
CA Bar 302093 | Whittier Law School | Rising Star — Super Lawyers 2019–2023 | Public Nuisance After Abatement Notice Cases Throughout LA County
See our full Public Nuisance After Abatement Notice defense practice
09 — FAQs
PC §373a Public Nuisance After Abatement Notice Questions — Los Angeles
What is PC §373a?
PC §373a makes it a misdemeanor to maintain a public nuisance on your property after receiving written notice from a peace officer to abate. Each day of continued nuisance is a separate offense, creating daily-multiplied exposure.
How is §373a different from §372?
§372 punishes any public nuisance without a notice requirement. §373a requires written notice from a peace officer and daily-multiplies each day of continued nuisance after the abatement period.
What counts as a public nuisance?
PC §370 defines it as anything injurious to health, indecent, offensive to the senses, or an obstruction to free use of property, affecting a community or considerable number of persons — private disputes do not qualify.
Can I be prosecuted if I never received notice?
No. §373a is triggered only by written notice from a peace officer. Without proper service of a notice specifying the nuisance and a reasonable abatement period, §373a fails. §372 may still apply.
Is §373a eligible for diversion?
Yes — §373a is a non-violent misdemeanor eligible for §1001.95 judicial diversion. Successful abatement and program completion result in dismissal.
Can each day really count as a separate offense?
Yes. §373a expressly states each day of continued nuisance after notice is a separate misdemeanor — cumulative exposure can reach tens of thousands in fines and multiple counts.
Does §373a apply to tenants?
Yes, if the tenant occupies or leases the property and has the capacity to abate. Tenants without repair authority may have a defense based on lack of control.
Available 24/7 — Free Consultation
Charged with PC §373a Public Nuisance? Call Rubin Law.
§373a's daily-multiplication feature creates severe cumulative exposure. Rubin Law, P.C. defends by attacking notice sufficiency, litigating reasonableness of the abatement period, and negotiating global abatement / diversion resolutions. Call (213) 723-2337.