Burglary is a felony offense, whether or not the offense placed anyone in danger, so you could face a substantial criminal sentence. The consequences may also extend into other areas of your life. A burglary conviction can impact your future employment opportunities and even be used as evidence of poor character in other civil disputes.
If you believe that you may be the target of a burglary investigation, it is essential to get the help of a Metairie burglary lawyer as soon as possible. A dedicated criminal defense attorney attorney can help you understand the charges against you, evaluate the evidence, and provide advice about defense strategies.
Defining Burglary
Many people think of burglary as a theft crime. However, burglary does not involve taking of any property, though it may commit theft as part of a burglary offense. Instead, burglary happens when someone breaks into an inhabited structure intending to commit theft or another felony crime. The inhabited structure could be a home, watercraft, or another inhabited structure.
The state must establish certain elements to prove their burglary charge.. The first element is that there must be an unlawful entry into an occupied home, structure, or building. The inhabited element is essential because an unauthorized entry into an abandoned building is not burglary. The entry must also be made with intent to commit theft or a felony crime. A burglary lawyer in Metairie could argue a case does not meet all the required elements of the burglary charge.
What Is An Occupied Structure?
A structure must be occupied or inhabited for the crime to be a burglary. However, that element does not mean someone else needs to be in the structure at the time of the offense. The structure needs to be inhabited, meaning that people either live in it or regularly use it for some purpose.
Per state law, “structure” can include a building, vehicles, movable or immovable structures, watercraft, and more. If someone uses the structure as a residence or for other purposes, it is a structure. In addition to houses and buildings, a structure can include sheds, garages, tents, travel trailers, cars, trucks, and lean-to structures.
Degrees of Burglary
The state divides burglary into two groups: simple and aggravated. Louisiana Revised Statutes § 14:62 defines simple burglary as unauthorized entry into a structure with the intent to commit a felony or theft, except as outlined in the aggravated theft statute, Louisiana Revised Statutes § 14:60.
The potential punishment for simple burglary is substantial. A first-time offender can get up to 12 years of hard labor and a $2,000 fine. When an offender is armed with a firearm during the offense, whether they carried the firearm into the structure or armed themselves after entering the structure, the maximum penalty does not change.
If the offender commits a series of multiple burglaries, the offender must serve at least one year in prison, though the maximum penalty does not change. The one-year sentence is not eligible for probation or suspension of the sentence.
Aggravated burglary has all of the elements of simple burglary plus one or more of the following conditions: the offender enters with a dangerous weapon, the offender arms themselves with a dangerous weapon after entering, or the offender commits battery on a person during the commission of the burglary. The battery can occur inside the structure or while an offender is entering or leaving the building.
The sentence for aggravated burglary differs from the sentence for simple burglary in two main ways. The first is that it has a minimum sentence of one year. The second is that it has a much larger maximum sentence—30 years instead of 12. A burglary attorney in Metairie could argue for a shorter sentence or a lesser fine.
Consult a Metairie Burglary Attorney for Help with Your Case
The potential defenses to a burglary charge depend on the facts of the case. A Metairie burglary lawyer can help you explore those defenses after consulting with you about the facts and talking to the prosecution about the evidence the state has against you. With that information, you can work together to form a strategy to minimize their impact. Call our office today to schedule a consultation.