Some states, like California, enforce a “locked door loophole” for vehicle burglary. If you can’t prove your car doors were locked, breaking in isn’t considered a crime. However, if the car was locked and you can prove it, the state can prosecute the offender.

The issue is, as presented by Senator Scott Wiener, that’s a very difficult thing to prove. Some drivers have testified in court to prove their vehicles were locked. For many people, like those in San Francisco or Los Angeles, the vehicle that was burglarized was a rental car.

To make it easier for authorities to prosecute those who break into vehicles, Wiener drafted Senate Bill 905. His bill, going into effect January 1, will nullify that loophole. A loophole that’s been in place since 1947.

“We need to close that loophole,” Wiener said during a Senate Public Safety Committee meeting in April when the bill was first proposed. “It makes no sense.”

The maximum fine for breaking into someone’s car would be $1,000 and could result in two years behind bars.

So, what does that mean for car thieves?

With the loophole closed, all a prosecutor would have to do was prove the vehicle was “forcibly entered.” A broken window would suffice as evidence. Just breaking into a car could result in a misdemeanor or a felony, depending on the damage done, items stolen, or whether or not someone was hurt.

His bill also created a new crime. If someone burglarized a car and steals over $950 worth of property, in one or multiple robberies, the thief could be charged. If the items stolen were intended to be sold, the seller and middleman could be charged, too.

“On Wednesday, a car break-in law I wrote goes into effect,” Wiener wrote in a release, quoted by KRON. “It’ll make it easier to hold people accountable for breaking into cars… Senate Bill 905 ends the absurd loophole requiring proof not just of a break-in but also that all doors to the car were locked.

“Under long-standing law in California, if you own a car but don’t recall (i.e. can’t testify under penalty of perjury) whether you locked all of the doors — or if you’re a visitor who rented a car here and you’re now far away and no longer here to testify you locked the doors — the case can be lost even with proof that the person broke into the car.”