What is the test for possession of a shaved key?

Such possession is prohibited by Penal Code section 466, which criminalizes "Every person having upon him or . . . in his . . . possession . . . [an] instrument or tool with intent feloniously to break or enter into any . . . vehicle as defined in the Vehicle Code." In 2007, this court concluded: "It is clear from the language of the statute that in order to sustain a conviction for possession of burglary tools in violation of [Penal Code] section 466, the prosecution must establish three elements: (1) possession by the defendant; (2) of tools within the purview of the statute; (3) with the intent to use the tools for the felonious purposes of breaking or entering." (People v. Southard (2007) 152 Cal.App.4th 1079, 1084-1085.)

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For purposes of this statute, an "instrument or tool" is an item intended for use to break into or gain access to a vehicle. (See People v. Shaw (2017) 18 Cal.App.5th 87, 92.) When arrested at the scene of the burglary, defendant was in possession of a "shaved key," an item he acknowledges is within this definition. Thus, defendant is not challenging the first and second of the elements we identified as necessary for conviction.