Is Dumpster Diving Legal in California?

Q: Did *California v. Greenwood* make dumpster diving legal in California?

No. Greenwood started with a Laguna Beach police investigation and held that police may search trash bags left at the curb without a warrant. It is a Fourth Amendment privacy ruling. It does not give anyone permission to enter private property or override California trespass, theft or recycling laws.

Last reviewed: October 17, 2026. This article is general information, not legal advice. California cities write their own scavenging and solid-waste rules, so check your city code as well as state law.

California has a special place in dumpster diving law: the Supreme Court case everyone quotes, California v. Greenwood, began with a police search of trash bags in Laguna Beach. But that case is about police searches, not about you. If you're eyeing a pile of furniture behind an apartment block in Sacramento or a bin of bottles on a Los Angeles curb, the laws that matter are California's trespass statutes, its curbside recycling law and your city's code.

Short answer: Is dumpster diving legal in California? There is no state law against dumpster diving itself. You can get into trouble by refusing to leave private property when asked, entering fenced or posted land, taking items a business still claims, damaging a lock or enclosure, or taking recyclables set out for a city curbside program, which state law treats as the property of the authorized recycler. Many cities, including San Diego, also ban rummaging in official trash and recycling containers.

For other states, see our guide to dumpster diving laws.

What the law actually says

Cal. Public Resources Code § 41950(a) "No person, other than the authorized recycling agent of the city or county, shall remove paper, glass, cardboard, plastic, used motor oil, ferrous metal, aluminum, or other recyclable materials which have been segregated from solid waste materials and placed at a designated recycling collection location for residential curbside collection programs authorized by a city, county, or local agency for the purposes of collection and recycling."

Cal. Penal Code § 602(o) makes it a misdemeanor to commit a trespass by: "Refusing or failing to leave land, real property, or structures belonging to, or lawfully occupied by, another and not open to the general public, upon being requested to leave by" a peace officer acting at the owner's request or by "the owner, the owner's agent, or the person in lawful possession."

Read § 41950 (FindLaw copy) · Read § 602 (FindLaw copy)

Where California v. Greenwood fits

In California v. Greenwood, 486 U.S. 35 (1988), the Laguna Beach Police Department asked the regular trash collector to hand over the garbage bags Billy Greenwood had left at the curb. Officers found evidence of drug use and used it to get a search warrant. The Supreme Court held that the search did not violate the Fourth Amendment, because garbage left at the curb is "readily accessible to animals, children, scavengers, snoops, and other members of the public."

Two points matter for you:

It is about police, not private citizens. The case decides when the government needs a warrant. It says nothing about whether you may walk onto a loading dock or into an apartment trash enclosure.
States can go further. The Court noted that "Individual States may surely construe their own constitutions as imposing more stringent constraints on police conduct than does the Federal Constitution." Before Greenwood, the California Supreme Court had held in People v. Krivda that the fruits of warrantless trash searches must be excluded, and that earlier ruling is part of the backstory of the case.

So Greenwood tells you curbside trash is exposed to the public. It does not tell you that taking it is lawful. In California, the curbside recycling law below is the biggest exception.

California trespass law and dumpsters

California does not have one simple "entering after notice" trespass offense the way some states do. Instead, Penal Code § 602 lists specific acts that count as criminal trespass. Three are most relevant to dumpster diving.

Refusing to leave: § 602(o)

This is the one most likely to come up. If a dumpster sits on property that is not open to the general public (a fenced service yard, a private apartment complex, an office park's back lot) and the owner, a manager or a police officer acting for the owner asks you to leave, staying is a misdemeanor.

The statute lets owners file a written request with local police that covers a period of up to 12 months when the property is closed to the public and posted as closed. That means officers may be able to remove trespassers at some sites without calling the owner each time.

Entering fenced or posted land: § 602.8 and § 602(l)

Penal Code § 602.8 covers anyone who, without the written permission of the owner or person in lawful possession, willfully enters land "under cultivation or enclosed by fence," or unenclosed land posted with no-trespassing signs at the intervals the statute sets. The penalties step up:

Offense under § 602.8	Penalty
First offense	Infraction, $75 fine
Second offense on the same owner's land	Infraction, $250 fine
Third or later offense on the same owner's land	Misdemeanor

Section 602(l) goes further when someone enters fenced or posted land and then refuses to leave when asked, tears down a no-trespassing sign, or tampers with a lock on a gate. That is a misdemeanor.

Interfering with a business: § 602(k)

Section 602(k) covers entering land "for the purpose of injuring property or property rights or with the intention of interfering with, obstructing, or injuring a lawful business." Ordinary, tidy dumpster diving is unlikely to fit, but scattering trash across a loading area or blocking deliveries could.

What a misdemeanor means

When a California misdemeanor has no specific penalty, Penal Code § 19 sets the maximum: up to six months in county jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both.

When taking the item can be theft

California's theft statute, Penal Code § 484, covers anyone who "shall feloniously steal, take, carry, lead, or drive away the personal property of another." The question is whether the item still has an owner.

Items genuinely thrown away are usually treated as abandoned.
Goods a store has set aside in a locked compactor, a returns cage, or a bale of cardboard for its recycler are still in someone's possession.
Recyclables at the curb are a special case: § 41950(c) says that once they are placed for collection in a residential curbside program, they "are the property of the authorized recycling agent."

Petty theft carries a fine of up to $1,000, up to six months in county jail, or both (Penal Code § 490).

The curbside rule has a built-in fairness limit. Under § 41950(b), you are not liable unless you know, or reasonably should know, that the materials would otherwise be collected by the authorized recycler. A city-issued blue cart at the curb on collection day is a strong hint.

Vandalism and littering

Vandalism (Penal Code § 594). Maliciously damaging or destroying someone else's property is vandalism. Cutting a padlock, prying open a lid or breaking a gate can bring this charge on top of trespass. Penalties depend on the amount of damage.
Littering (Penal Code § 374.4). It is an infraction to litter on public or private property, and the definition includes waste matter "that escapes or is allowed to escape from a container." Fines are mandatory: $250 to $1,000 for a first conviction, rising for repeat convictions, and a court can add litter pickup.

If you pull bags out and leave them torn open on the pavement, that alone can earn a ticket.

City rules: San Diego as an example

Many California cities have their own scavenging ordinances, and they are usually stricter than state law. San Diego is a good example, and both rules below are in the city's official municipal code:

San Diego Municipal Code § 66.0402 makes it unlawful for anyone other than the owner or a person authorized by law or the City Manager "to rummage in, disturb, interfere, or remove refuse or recyclable material from officially designated refuse and recyclable containers." Section 66.0401 says recyclables placed in a designated container become the property of the City or its authorized agent.
San Diego Municipal Code § 66.0717 bars anyone other than the contracted collector from removing or interfering with recyclables placed at a designated collection location, if the person knew or reasonably should have known they were set out for collection. Violations of that division can be prosecuted as misdemeanors.

Other cities have similar rules with their own fines. To check yours, search your city's municipal code for "scavenging", "solid waste" or "recyclable materials", or call the city's sanitation or public works department.

Practical tips for California

Ask first. A manager's "yes" removes most of the trespass risk. A "no" is a request to leave under § 602(o), so respect it.
Leave city carts alone. Between § 41950 and local ordinances, the blue curbside cart is the riskiest container in California.
Treat fences and locks as a no. Fenced land and posted signs bring § 602.8 into play, and tampering with a gate lock is a misdemeanor under § 602(l).
Leave the moment you're asked. Staying to argue turns an awkward moment into a misdemeanor.
Clean up. Litter fines under § 374.4 are mandatory once you're convicted.
Be careful with food. Perishable food left in a hot dumpster can grow bacteria quickly. Skip meat, dairy, cooked food and anything with damaged packaging.
Protect yourself. Wear gloves and sturdy shoes, bring a light, and avoid needles, chemicals, batteries and broken glass.

If police stop you

Stay calm, be polite and leave if you're asked to. If you get a citation, read it carefully: an infraction under § 602.8 or § 374.4 is handled very differently from a misdemeanor. For a misdemeanor, talk to a criminal defense lawyer or ask the court about a public defender before you plead.

Neighboring rules differ. For comparison, see our guides to dumpster diving in Texas and dumpster diving in New York.

Is dumpster diving illegal in California?

Not as such. No California statute makes it a crime to look through a dumpster. The risk comes from other laws: trespass under Penal Code § 602 and § 602.8, theft if the owner still claims the items, vandalism if you damage a lock or enclosure, Public Resources Code § 41950 for curbside recyclables, and city scavenging ordinances.

Is it illegal to take cans and bottles from someone's recycling bin in California?

Often, yes. Public Resources Code § 41950 says no one other than the authorized recycling agent may remove recyclables set out for a city or county residential curbside program, and that the materials belong to that agent once they are placed at the curb. Many cities, such as San Diego, add their own scavenging ban with local penalties.

What is the penalty for trespassing in California?

Most trespass offenses in Penal Code § 602 are misdemeanors. Under Penal Code § 19, a misdemeanor with no other stated penalty carries up to six months in county jail, a fine of up to $1,000, or both. Entering fenced or posted land without written permission under § 602.8 starts as a $75 infraction for a first offense.

Did *California v. Greenwood* make dumpster diving legal in California?

No. Greenwood started with a Laguna Beach police investigation and held that police may search trash bags left at the curb without a warrant. It is a Fourth Amendment privacy ruling. It does not give anyone permission to enter private property or override California trespass, theft or recycling laws.

Can I take food from a grocery store dumpster in California?

The same trespass and theft rules apply as for anything else, so ask the store first. Some stores donate surplus food, so the manager may be able to point you to a food bank or recovery program instead. Food from a dumpster can be unsafe, especially meat, dairy and cooked food left out in the heat.

Is Dumpster Diving Legal in California? Trespass, Recycling Theft and City Rules