Burglary is the criminal offense of breaking and entering a building illegally for the purpose of committing a crime. Many people operate under the false impression that burglary involves theft when, under the law, breaking into a building to commit any crime constitutes the offense of burglary. Burglary of a residential structure is a class B felony while burglary of a commercial structure is a class C felony. These charges are in addition to any additional charge for a crime committed once inside the structure. Our Jonesboro assault and battery and theft attorney can help you with these common accompanying charges.

Class Y felony aggravated residential burglary is the most serious burglary crime. Residential burglary is elevated to aggravated residential burglary by the use or threat of use of a deadly weapon. In addition, residential burglary is elevated to aggravated residential burglary if, during the act of committing burglary, a suspect inflicts or attempts to inflict death or serious bodily harm to another person, even if the suspect is not armed.

As defined by Arkansas code, a person commits theft of property if he or she knowingly does one of the following:

• Takes or exercises unauthorized control over or makes an unauthorized transfer of an interest in the property of another person with the purpose of depriving the owner of the property
• Obtains the property of another person by deception or by threat with the purpose of depriving the owner of the property

The classification or seriousness of a theft charge depends on several factors and can range from a class A misdemeanor to the most serious class Y felony. One of the earliest steps we take in defending you against a theft charge is to make sure that the government has properly classified the offense based on the alleged circumstances of the crime. The knowledgeable criminal defense attorney at Lilly Law Firm, PA has the experience needed to represent you efficiently and effectively.