INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — How much time thieves spend in Indiana jails now depends on the value of what they steal.



Under a law that went into effect Tuesday, theft of items worth less than $750 is a misdemeanor with a maximum one-year penalty. Previously, it was a low-level felony with a potentially harsher penalty.



The Indianapolis Star reports (http://indy.st/1iZ2gob ) the change is part of a three-year overhaul of the Indiana Criminal Code by legislators. It expands the former four levels of felonies to six levels.



Part of the change was an effort to make penalties more proportionate to the crime.



The new code gives judges more flexibility to send low-level offenders to work-release or home detention instead of prison.