larceny

Larceny is a crime consisting of the unlawful taking and carrying away of personal property of another with the intent to permanently deprive the owner of it. Historically a common law offense, larceny has influenced modern theft statutes and is defined by the essential elements of taking, asportation (movement) of property, property of another, lack of permission, and intent to deprive permanently.

Elements typically include: a taking and carrying away of tangible property; property belonging to another; without consent or a legal right to take it; and intent to permanently deprive the owner of the property. Some jurisdictions require the property to be movable and actually carried away; others treat mere unauthorized control as sufficient if permanent deprivation is intended.

Larceny is distinct from robbery, which involves force or intimidation, and from embezzlement, where the offender lawfully possessed the property but later misappropriates it. Embezzlement generally requires a fiduciary or entrusted relationship; larceny does not. In modern practice, many jurisdictions use theft as the general term and either subsume larceny or treat it as a subset within broader theft statutes, with varying nomenclature across legal systems.

Penalties for larceny depend on value, jurisdiction, and prior conduct, and range from misdemeanor to felony. Some jurisdictions impose separate degrees or enhancements for high-value property, repeat offenses, or aggravating factors. As a historical and scholarly concept, larceny remains part of discussions of property crime, though many legal codes have integrated or replaced it with comprehensive theft provisions.