Crime and punishment

[Mike]

Crime and punishment

Crimes and wanted level
There are many different crimes which can be committed in San Andreas, from pickpocketing to bank robbery and grand theft auto to murder.

Wanted level
Each crime you commit will increase your wanted level. The more serious the crime, the more your wanted level will increase. Your wanted level is represented by 6 stars at the top of the screen which will vary in color depending on your wanted status.

The wanted level system works on a points system. These 'wanted points' are separate to your wanted level. Different crimes increase your wanted points by different amounts. Each wanted level requires more points than the last to be achieved. For example you need 5 wanted points to become wanted level 2 and 10 points to reach wanted level 3.

Color	Wanted stars	Wanted points	Time to evade	Meaning	Action
White	0	0	-	Innocent	You are not wanted by the police.
Yellow	1	1	1:30	Minor offender	Cops will issue you with a ticket which you must pay.
Orange	2	5	2:00	Felon	A warrant is issued for your arrest. Lethal force may be used as a last resort.
Orange	3	10	2:30	Felon	A warrant is issued for your arrest. Lethal force may be used as a last resort.
Orange	4	16	3:00	Felon	A warrant is issued for your arrest. Lethal force may be used as a last resort.
Orange	5	24	3:30	Felon	A warrant is issued for your arrest. Lethal force may be used as a last resort.
Red	6	35	4:00	Most wanted	Cops will arrest or kill most wanted suspects. They will choose the safer option in the situation encountered.

For example, if you commit the following crimes from being innocent:
Criminal damage - 1 wanted level point
Grand theft auto - 2 wanted level points
Drunk driving - 1 wanted level point
Shooting in public - 1 wanted level point

After committing all those crimes you will now have 5 wanted level points and therefore a wanted level of 2 stars.

Here is a list of all the current crimes and their wanted points:

Crime	Wanted points	Wanted level after from innocent
Murder	25	5
Law Enforcer Murder	30	5
Grand Theft Auto	2	1
Emergency Vehicle Theft	5	2
Military Vehicle Theft	6	2
Attempted Murder	5	2
Assault	2	1
Police Assault	5	2
Hit And Run	3	1
Unpaid Fine	5	2
Failed To Stop	5	2
Drive-By Shooting	5	2
Shooting in Public	1	1
Robbery	8	2
Attempted Robbery	5	2
Bank Robbery	20	4
Attempted Bank Robbery	12	3
Casino Robbery	20	4
Drunk Driving	1	1
Aiding Suspect	3	1
Trespassing on Police Property	1	1
Trespassing on Govt. Property	2	1
Jail Breakout	35	6
Bribery	15	3
Crime Scene Trespassing	1	1
Breaking and Entering	6	2
Attempted Break and Enter	3	1
Criminal Damage	1	1
Destruction of Evidence	1	1

NOTE: These values may change in the future.

Witnessed crimes
Certain crimes committed will only increase your wanted level if there are witnesses around. These include shooting in public and breaking into vehicles.

Stolen vehicles
Driving a stolen vehicle past any police officer will give you a wanted level. This can be circumvented by changing the licence plate at any gas station or via a mechanic (/mechanic).

Tickets
When you have a wanted level of 1 star (yellow stars/name) you will be issued tickets by the cops. Failing to pay a ticket will result in an instant wanted level of 2 for which you will be arrested.

Jail
If you are arrested you will be transported to a jail cell in the active city. You will have to serve a minimum sentence which is determined by your crime history, up to a maximum of 10 minutes. Once this time has elapsed you will be able to pay your bail costs. Bail costs are also dependant on your crime history up to a maximum of $10,000. If you cannot afford bail or would rather not spend the money, your bail will slowly decrease over time after your jail sentence has been served. Once your bail reached $0 you will be automatically released from jail.

Cell transfer
You can request to transfer to a different jail cell using the jail menu (press N). This might come in handy if you are being attacked. Note that this ability will be revoked if you attempt to break out of jail or if you recently attacked another player in jail.

Break-outs
You can attempt to break out of jail through the jail menu (press N). If successful you will receive a 6-star wanted level (most wanted) and have to escape the police department and get away. If you are unsuccessful your sentence and bail will be increased and you will be unable to transfer jail cells for some time.

Co-op breakouts are also an option. An outsider can visit the jail cells and offer to break you out of jail. Doing so will result in both players gaining a 6-star wanted level and you will both have to fight your way out of the police station and escape.

Evasion
When you have a wanted level, you can reduce it by staying away from the cops. The higher your wanted level is, the further away from the cops you need to be. Your radar blip visibility distance is increased the higher your wanted level, meaning you will have to be even further away to evade the cops.

Each wanted star takes more time to evade than the lower one, for example it takes 4 minutes to lose your 6th star and 1 minute 30 seconds to lose your first star. In total, to evade the cops and reduce your wanted level from 6 stars to 0 stars (innocent) will take 16 minutes and 30 seconds.

Bribery
If waiting so long to evade your wanted level is not for you, bribery is an option. Bribery pickups can be found scattered all around San Andreas (hint: alleyways) and will reduce your wanted level by 1 for $500 per star (e.g. if you have 3 stars it will cost 4 x $500 which is $2000 to remove your 4th star and become wanted level 3).

You can also directly bribe cops via the player interaction menu (look at a cop and press Y). If the cop accepts this you will become innocent. If the cop refuses, your wanted level will increase.

Bribery is also possible in jail. If a cop accepts a jail bribe your sentence and bail will be reduced and you may be released from jail. If a cop refuses a jail bribe your sentence and bail will increase.