Brown

*923 *728 Napa law enforcement officers initiated a traffic stop of appellant Darius Brown (Brown) and found him in possession of clothing stolen from the Ralph Lauren and Calvin Klein outlet stores. Brown was charged with a single felony violation of Penal Code 1 section 496, subdivision (a) (receiving stolen property in excess of $950 in value). A jury found Brown guilty as charged.

Brown appeals, arguing that he should have been charged with shoplifting, not receiving stolen property. In the alternative, Brown contends that the People improperly aggregated the values of the items stolen from the two stores, charging him with a single felony count of receiving stolen property, rather than two misdemeanors. We disagree with Brown's first argument but find merit in his second.

BACKGROUND

Shortly after 4:30 p.m. on August 13, 2017, police, responding to a dispatch regarding a theft at the Napa Outlets retail shopping center, found *729 Brown in his car and in possession of various items of clothing stolen from the Calvin Klein and Ralph Lauren outlet stores. Further investigation determined that the items stolen from the Calvin Klein store would have sold for $754, while the…