California Legal Codes and Statutes

§ 805

Added by Stats. 1984, Ch. 1270, Sec. 2.

For the purpose of determining the applicable limitation of time pursuant to this chapter:

(a)An offense is deemed punishable by the maximum punishment prescribed by statute for the offense, regardless of the punishment actually sought or imposed. Any enhancement of punishment prescribed by statute shall be disregarded in determining the maximum punishment prescribed by statute for an offense.
(b)The limitation of time applicable to an offense that is necessarily included within a greater offense is the limitation of time applicable to the lesser included offense, regardless of the limitation of time applicable to the greater offense.

Cite this section

Cal. Pen. Code § 805 (2026)
https://ca.codecond.com/codes/pen/part-2-of-criminal-procedure/title-3-additional-provisions-regarding-criminal-procedure/chapter-2-time-of-commencing-criminal-actions/section-805

Other sections in Chapter 2 - Time of Commencing Criminal Actions

§ 799§ 800§ 801§ 801.1§ 801.2§ 801.5§ 801.6§ 801.7§ 801.8§ 802§ 802.5§ 803§ 803.5§ 803.6§ 803.7§ 804§ 805

This content is for reference, learning, and study purposes only. All legal text should be verified against the official California Legislative Information website, which is the authoritative source for California law. Data last processed: February 14, 2026.