Cal. PEN § 598c
This is the official text of Cal. PEN § 598c, part of California’s Penal Code — defines crimes and sets criminal procedure in California.
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
(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, it is unlawful for any person to possess, to import into or export from the state, or to sell, buy, give away, hold, or accept any horse with the intent of killing, or having another kill, that horse, if that person knows or should have known that any part of that horse will be used for human consumption.
(b) For purposes of this section, “horse” means any equine, including any horse, pony, burro, or mule.
(c) Violation of this section is a felony punishable by imprisonment in the state prison for 16 months, or two or three years.
(d) It is not the intent of this section to affect any commonly accepted commercial, noncommercial, recreational, or sporting activity that relates to horses.
(e) It is not the intent of this section to affect any existing law that relates to horse taxation or zoning.
(b) For purposes of this section, “horse” means any equine, including any horse, pony, burro, or mule.
(c) Violation of this section is a felony punishable by imprisonment in the state prison for 16 months, or two or three years.
(d) It is not the intent of this section to affect any commonly accepted commercial, noncommercial, recreational, or sporting activity that relates to horses.
(e) It is not the intent of this section to affect any existing law that relates to horse taxation or zoning.
Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site
Dealing with a criminal defense matter in California?
See all California Criminal Defense lawyers
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.