BURGLARY CRIMES

One of the most critical elements of proving the charge of burglary in Florida is that at the time of the entering, the person had the fully formed intent to commit an offense. The key element of a burglary in Florida is the entering of the property with the intent to commit a crime inside.

 

FLORIDA BURGLARY STATUTE:

The burglary statute in Florida covers not only wrongful entries into real property, such as a building or home, but also a conveyance. A conveyance in Florida can be an automobile, truck, bus, or anything that moves on the highways.

 

If you are accused of burglary of a conveyance the state must prove that you wrongfully entered the conveyance with the fully formed intent to commit a crime. It is a burglary of a conveyance if you reach through a window of an automobile and hit someone.

 

In Florida, it is quite common for fights to spill over or enter into automobiles. It is most common in Florida for an accused to be sentenced to up to 30 years in the Florida penitentiary because they struck someone through an open window of an automobile. In that case the crime in Florida is burglary of conveyance with battery.

 

EXAMPLES OF BURGLARY CRIMES IN FLORIDA

By way of example: if you walk past an automobile in the parking lot and see a woman’s purse inside it is not abandoned property, it is in the possession of the owner. If you reach inside the car, either through an open window or an unlocked door, you’ve committed the crime of burglary of a conveyance.

 

Definitions of terms are an important part of understanding the burglary statute in Florida. Florida statute 810 begins with a definition of the following: structure, dwelling, conveyance.

 

In Florida, as defined in the burglary statute, a structure is a building of any kind, it can be permanent or temporary structure, which has a roof over it and includes the land it sits upon.

 

BURGLARY OF A DWELLING IN FLORIDA:

The burglary statute in Florida defines burglary as a crime in which a person enters a dwelling or a building. It is a burglary to enter both a conveyance and a part of a dwelling any kind, including the attached porch even if it’s a temporary; that is a nonpermanent structure. It can include mobile homes which have a roof over it and are designed to be occupied by people at night. It always includes the land and property the dwelling sits on.

 

The burglary statute in Florida defines a conveyance as any motor vehicle, vessel, railroad car or ships, trailer, aircraft or sleeping car. To enter a conveyance includes taking apart any portion of the conveyance. In Florida the burglary statute treats as an equally criminally liable offense entering a home or an automobile.

 

If you enter an automobile with the purpose of stealing something inside you committed burglary of a conveyance: a first-degree felony.

 

UNDERSTANDING BURGLARY CRIMES IN FLORIDA:

To have a complete understanding the term burglary in Florida law it is important to be clear that burglary requires both entering and remaining in a structure or conveyance with the fully formed intent to commit a crime therein. Burglary in Florida is primarily a crime which involves invading the possessory rights of another person and committing a theft or other crime while doing it. A burglary in Florida involves both an entering and remaining with intent to commit an offense.

 

The burglary statute in Florida, for punishment purposes, makes a distinction between an occupied dwelling and an unoccupied building. In Florida sentencing is enhanced if the burglary is committed in an occupied dwelling, it is further enhanced if the dwelling is occupied at night.

 

BURGLARY OF AN UNOCCUPIED BUILDING IN FLORIDA:

Burglary of a warehouse or an unoccupied building is treated differently in Florida statutes than the burglary of a home.

 

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO ENTER OR REMAIN?

For you to be convicted of burglary in Florida the State must prove an unauthorized entering or remaining in a structure or conveyance. To fully meet the law’s requirement of this element it is sufficient if any part of you, or an object held by you, designed to carry out the crime, is used. So for example if you reach into the open window of a home hoping to pick up some jewelry on the windowsill, you committed a completed burglary. The act of entering through the window with your arm constitutes a trespass with the fully-formed intent to steal the jewelry, thus satisfying the requirements of committing a burglary.

 

In Florida, Burglary can be a first degree felony carrying a maximum sentence of 30 years in the Florida prison system.  However, if, in the course of the offense the defendant assaults or commits battery on anyone in the dwelling, it can be a 30 year to life sentence.  If the defendant was armed in the course of committing a burglary, it is a life sentence.

 

In Florida if you wrongfully enter a home and steal a gun, you can be convicted of a life felony, regardless of whether you ever intended to use the gun, never displayed the gun, and the gun was not involved in the commission of the burglary.  Stealing a gun in a home you entered illegally becomes a life sentence. The crime of burglary includes the lesser offenses committed in the course of the crime.  For instance, trespassing is a lesser included offense to the charge of burglary.

 

UNDERSTANDING A TRESPASS IN FLORIDA VS. A BURGLARY:

The following illustrations will help you understand the difference between committing a burglary and a simple trespass.

 

If I walk across your front yard only with the intent of saving a few steps, I’ve committed a trespass.

 

If I walk across your front yard and see your bicycle and decide to steal it, I have committed a trespass plus a theft, and not a burglary. Why? Because in this illustration I didn’t form the intent to steal your bicycle until after I entered your yard. Remember: in Florida to be convicted of burglary you must have the fully formed intent to commit a crime before you commit a trespass.

 

If I see your bicycle before I enter your yard, and then enter your yard with the intent of stealing your bicycle: the crime of burglary in Florida has been committed.

 

ARMED BURGLARY:

In Florida armed burglary is a first-degree felony. Armed burglary means that in the course of committing the burglary the offender either commits an assault, which is putting someone in fear of an unlawful touching, or a battery. In Florida a battery is an unlawful touching. If in the course of committing a burglary a person arms himself, or becomes armed within the structure or conveyance, the charge becomes a life felony.

 

In Florida, the statutory term “in the course of committing” includes both the entering and the entry, anything that happens during the course of the crime or attempted crime, and in the flight after the attempt or actual commission of the burglary. Understanding armed burglary in Florida includes a clear understanding that any crime in Florida has a beginning and an end: which means escaping after the crime is part of the crime. So, if after committing a burglary and fleeing a person arms themselves, they now become subject to a life felony. For example, if after leaving a burglary in a vehicle a defendant has a rifle or firearm in the car, they can be convicted of armed burglary in Florida.

 

BURGLARY IN FLORIDA SINCE JULY 1, 2001

The Florida Legislature increased and broadened the scope of the burglary statute effective July 1, 2001. It is now easier for a prosecutor in Florida to obtain a conviction for burglary under the expanded definition.

 

Because this amended statute is both complicated and complex, it is best to consult with a South Florida criminal defense attorney. An experienced criminal attorney in Florida can explain to you both the meaning of the Florida criminal statute as well as the cases which define and clarify the statute.

 

ELEMENTS OF THE OFFENSE OF BURGLARY IN FLORIDA:

The basic element of a Florida burglary conviction requires the prosecutor to present evidence beyond a reasonable doubt that the entering into the dwelling or conveyance was wrongful and committed with the intent of committing an additional crime once inside.

 

If a defendant enters a dwelling or conveyance without the intent of committing another crime in inside, then it is not a burglary.

 

Burglary of a dwelling can be proven in two ways. First by entering a dwelling without the permission of the owner or with intent to commit a crime inside, or secondly, by remaining in a dwelling surreptitiously, which means by stealth or hiding, after a consensual entry.

 

Statutes do not make it a burglary to enter a store intending to steal. That crime is theft. But if after lawfully entering the store you conceal yourself, and then remain in the store to commit a theft, it becomes a burglary.

 

ARMED BURGLARY:

Armed Burglary can be committed with an unloaded firearm.  In Florida the criminal statue does not distinguish between a firearm that is loaded, unloaded, and in some cases, not working.  A criminal defendant can be convicted of committing an armed burglary even though there is no direct evidence that he stole the gun in the course of the burglary.

If there is a co-defendant who committed the armed offense, anyone participating in the crime, even if unarmed, can be convicted of armed burglary.

 

If you are armed with a deadly weapon, not a firearm, it is a first degree felony in Florida, with a maximum 30-year sentence.

 

A STRUCTURE VERSUS A DWELLING:

To be convicted of a burglary of a dwelling in Florida, the jury must make a specific finding that the burglary was committed in the dwelling, not just a structure.

 

If the jury does not find that the structure was occupied, you cannot be convicted of burglary of an occupied dwelling.  In that situation, the lesser included offense of burglary of a dwelling can be found.  A conviction for burglary of an unoccupied structure carries a 15-year maximum sentence.  A conviction for burglary of a dwelling carries a 30-year sentence.  If in the course of burglary of a dwelling the defendant becomes armed, the conviction has a 30 year sentence with a possible life sentence.