AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THEFT.

Crime

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor: Cooke
Last action: 2026-06-30
Official status: Lieu/Substituted 6/10/26
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The effective date is unknown as it was not provided in the official source material.

Changes to How Theft Charges Are Calculated

This bill allows prosecutors to combine multiple thefts into one charge if they are part of a pattern and lets evidence from different areas in Delaware be used together.

What This Bill Does

Allows the value of items stolen at separate times to be added up for one single charge if the acts form a continuing course of conduct.
Permits courts in one area of Delaware to use thefts that happened in another area as proof of a continuing pattern of behavior.
Defines a 'continuing course of conduct' as a pattern made up of more than one act over time, regardless of how long it takes.
Makes technical corrections to the law text to match official writing standards.

Who It Names or Affects

People accused of committing theft in Delaware
Prosecutors who bring charges for theft cases
Courts that decide on theft convictions and sentencing

Terms To Know

Aggregated: Combined or added together to make one total amount.
Continuing course of conduct: A pattern made up of more than one act that happens over a period of time, regardless of duration.

Limits and Unknowns

The bill does not state a specific date when these new rules will start.
The text defines what counts as a continuing course of conduct but does not list every possible example of one.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

HA 1

1 • Cooke

PWB 6/9/26

Plain English: This amendment changes how Delaware law defines and proves a 'course of conduct' when combining multiple thefts into one charge.

It adds new rules stating that people are subject to specific sections (§§ 271 through 275) regarding these crimes.
It replaces the old definition with two clear options: a pattern of actions showing a single purpose, or a continuous theft scheme.
It allows prosecutors to combine related thefts from different parts of Delaware into one charge in any court that handles statewide cases.
If combining thefts makes the total value high enough for a felony charge, the prosecutor must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that these acts were part of a connected course of conduct.

The amendment does not explain what specific factors count as 'timing,' 'location,' or 'intent' when deciding if actions have a singular purpose.
It is unclear how courts will decide which court has jurisdiction to hear the combined charge in practice.

Bill History

2026-06-30 Delaware General Assembly
HS 1 for HB 276 - Passed By Senate. Votes: 21 YES
2026-06-24 Delaware General Assembly
HS 1 for HB 276 - Reported Out of Committee (Judiciary) in Senate with 4 On Its Merits
2026-06-11 Delaware General Assembly
HS 1 for HB 276 - Passed By House. Votes: 40 YES 1 ABSENT
2026-06-11 Delaware General Assembly
HS 1 for HB 276 - Assigned to Judiciary Committee in Senate
2026-06-10 Delaware General Assembly
Substituted in House by HS 1 for HB 276
2026-06-09 Delaware General Assembly
Amendment HA 1 to HB 276 - Introduced and Placed With Bill
2026-05-06 Delaware General Assembly
Reported Out of Committee (Judiciary) in House with 8 On Its Merits
2026-04-22 Delaware General Assembly
Not Worked in Committee
2026-01-21 Delaware General Assembly
Introduced and Assigned to Judiciary Committee in House

Official Summary Text

AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THEFT.
This Act permits the value of items stolen at separate times to be grouped and prosecuted as one charge, if the thefts were part of a pattern. It also allows the occurrence of an act in one jurisdiction to be used as evidence of a pattern being charged in another jurisdiction.
This Act also makes technical corrections to existing law to conform to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

Legislation Document

SPONSOR:

Rep. Cooke & Sen. Poore & Sen. Hocker

Reps. Collins, Osienski, Ross Levin, Yearick; Sens. Richardson, Seigfried

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

153rd GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HOUSE BILL NO. 276

AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THEFT.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE:

Section 1. Amend § 841, Title 11 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and insertions as shown by underline as follows:

§ 841. Theft; class B felony; class D felony; class F felony; class G felony; class A misdemeanor; restitution.

(c) (1) Except where a victim is 62 years of age or older, or an “adult who is impaired” as defined in § 3902 of Title 31, or a “person with a disability” as defined in § 3901(a)(2) of Title 12, theft is a class A misdemeanor unless the value of the property received, retained or disposed of is $1,500 or more, in which case it is a class G felony.

(2) Where a victim is 62 years of age or older, or an “adult who is impaired” as defined in § 3902 of Title 31, or a “person with a disability” as defined in § 3901(a)(2) of Title 12, theft is a class G felony unless the value of the property received, retained or disposed of is $1,500 or more, in which case it is a class F felony.

(3) Notwithstanding paragraphs (c)(1) and (2) of this section:

a. Where the value of the property received, retained or disposed of is more than $50,000 but less than $100,000, theft is a class D

felony;

felony.

b. Where the value of the property received, retained or disposed of is $100,000 or more, theft is a class B felony.

(4) For purposes of this section, a series of related thefts committed in a continuing course of conduct by a person or group of persons may be aggregated into 1

count or charge, with the sum of the aggregate value of the property being the value considered in determining the degree of theft. A continuing course of conduct is

a pattern of actions composed of more than 1 act over a period of time, regardless of duration. Acts indicating a course of conduct that occur in more than 1 jurisdiction of this State may be used by any other jurisdiction in which an act occurred as evidence of a continuing pattern of conduct or a course of conduct.

SYNOPSIS

This Act permits the value of items stolen at separate times to be grouped and prosecuted as one charge, if the thefts were part of a pattern. It also allows the occurrence of an act in one jurisdiction to be used as evidence of a pattern being charged in another jurisdiction.

This Act also makes technical corrections to existing law to conform to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.