(a) A person commits theft of utility services when he or she knowingly, without authority, diverts or interferes with any public water, gas, power supply, or other public services or installs any device with the intent to divert or interfere with any public water, gas, power supply, or other public services without the authority of the owner or entity furnishing or transmitting such product or services.
     (b) Sentence.

Attorney's Note

Under the Illinois Statutes, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:
ClassPrisonFine
Class 2 felonybetween 3 and 7 yearsup to $25,000
Class A misdemeanorup to 1 yearup to $2,500
For details, see § Ill. Comp. Stat. 730 ILCS 5/5-4.5-35 and § Ill. Comp. Stat. 730 ILCS 5/5-4.5-55
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Terms Used In Illinois Compiled Statutes 720 ILCS 5/16-14

  • owner: means a person, other than the offender, who has possession of or any other interest in the property involved, even though such interest or possession is unlawful, and without whose consent the offender has no authority to exert control over the property. See Illinois Compiled Statutes 720 ILCS 5/15-2

         (1) Except as provided in paragraph (3), a violation
    
of this Section is a Class A misdemeanor unless the offense was committed for remuneration, in which case it is a Class 4 felony.
        (2) Except as provided in paragraph (3), a second or
    
subsequent violation of this Section is a Class 4 felony.
        (3) If the offense causes disruption of the public
    
utility services or delay in the restoration of the public utility services to 10 or more customers or affects an area of more than one square mile, a violation of this Section is a Class 2 felony.
    (c) This Section does not apply to the theft of telecommunication services.
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