Helpful Articles
Can I Be Convicted of Burglary Without “Breaking” Anything?
The penalties for burglary in Illinois
can be very serious. The law on burglary in Illinois is 720 ILCS 5/19-1, and it
states that a burglary occurs whenever a person:
(1) knowingly,
and
(2) without
authority
(3a) enters into
or (3b) remains within
(4) a building,
watercraft, railroad car or other prohibited structure or item
(5) with the
intent to commit a (a) theft or (b) felony inside.
This is a
deceptively-simple crime: when the crime’s definition is parsed out (as it is
above), it is easy to see that there are five distinct elements that the
prosecution must prove beyond a reasonable doubt before a person can be found
guilty of burglary.
What Is Meant by “Knowingly”?
“Knowingly”
is the mens rea – the mental state –
required for the commission of the crime. This requires some proof that the
defendant was aware of what he or she was doing and the facts and circumstances
that he or she found him- or herself in.
What Is Meant by “Without Authority”?
A
burglary is the entering of a designated structure “without authority.” This
element is proven if there is proof beyond a reasonable doubt that the owner of
the property did not give the defendant permission to come onto his or her
property or remain on his or her property. Authority can be granted and then
taken away: if the defendant initially came onto the owner’s property with the
owner’s authority but that authority was later taken away, the defendant may be
guilty of committing a burglary (if the other elements of the crime are met).
A
property owner may not need to affirmatively tell the defendant that he or she
is not welcome in order for the “without authority” element of the offense to
be met. If the allegedly-burglarized property is private in nature (like a home or a private car), it is generally
inferred that the defendant does not have permission to be on or in the
property. The defendant may find it necessary as a practical matter to show
that he or she did in fact have permission to be on or in such property.
Conversely, if the allegedly-burglarized property is public in nature (such as a business or government office), it will
usually be assumed that the defendant does have permission to be on or in this
property during regular business hours. The prosecution will find it necessary
in most cases to show that defendant was informed in some way that he or she
was not welcomed to come upon the property any longer.
What Is Meant by “With the Intent to
Commit a Theft or Felony”?
Simply
being on or in another’s property without the owner’s permission is not
burglary – it is criminal trespass. Burglary requires the additional element
that the unauthorized entry or remaining on or in the property was done in
order to carry out a theft (regardless of the value of the item) or a felony
while on or inside the property.
Is There an Element of “Breaking” in the
Burglary Statute?
There
is no requirement that the prosecution show that anything was “broken”
by the defendant’s entering into or remaining on the property. A defendant may
be convicted of burglary if he or she enters into a building without the
owner’s permission, even if the door the defendant enters through is opened and
unlocked, so long as the other elements are met.
What are penalties for Burglary?
Burglary
in Illinois is a class 2 felony, which carries with it a prison term of three
to seven years in the Illinois Department of Corrections. If the act took place
in the dwelling place of another, you can be charged with Residential Burglary,
which enhances the offense to a class 1 felony with a sentencing range of 4 to
15 years.
