Cal. GOV § 1855
This is the official text of Cal. GOV § 1855, part of California’s Government Code — covers the structure and operation of state and local government, including public employment and public records.
Not legal advice. This page reproduces the official text of a government statute for reference only. Laws change, and how a statute applies depends on your specific facts. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state.
Official statutory text
Every officer whose office is abolished by law, or who, after the expiration of the time for which he may be appointed or elected, or after he has resigned or been legally removed from office, willfully and unlawfully
(a) Mutilates, destroys, or takes away the records, papers, documents, or other writings appertaining or belonging to his office, or
(b) Withholds or detains from his successor, or other person entitled thereto, the records, papers, documents, or other writings appertaining or belonging to his office, or any money or property in his custody as such officer,
is punishable by imprisonment in the state prison.
(a) Mutilates, destroys, or takes away the records, papers, documents, or other writings appertaining or belonging to his office, or
(b) Withholds or detains from his successor, or other person entitled thereto, the records, papers, documents, or other writings appertaining or belonging to his office, or any money or property in his custody as such officer,
is punishable by imprisonment in the state prison.
Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site
Need a lawyer in California?
Find a California lawyer
About this page: Statute text is reproduced from official government publishers via the
Open US Law dataset
(Vaquill AI, snapshot v2026.08, CC BY 4.0). Primary legislative text like this is public domain under the government-edicts doctrine
(Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). We link every section back to its official source so you can verify it independently.