Brooklyn Burglary Lawyer

Burglary in New York is entering or remaining unlawfully in a building with intent to commit a crime inside. No theft is required, and no breaking is required. That breadth is exactly why burglary charges get overcharged, and why the right defense often turns a violent felony into a trespass or nothing at all. If you are facing this charge in Brooklyn, call 646-453-4001 for a free, confidential consultation, available 24 hours a day.

New York Burglary Charges

Penal Law Article 140 covers trespass through first degree burglary:

PL §140.10, Criminal Trespass 3rd: Class B misdemeanor. Unlawful entry without criminal intent inside.
PL §140.20, Burglary 3rd Degree: Class D felony. Any building, intent to commit a crime inside. Up to 7 years.
PL §140.25, Burglary 2nd Degree: Class C violent felony. A dwelling, or aggravating factors in any building. Up to 15 years.
PL §140.30, Burglary 1st Degree: Class B violent felony. A dwelling plus a weapon or injury. Up to 25 years.

What Is at Stake

Second degree burglary is charged whenever the building is a dwelling, which makes it a violent felony with mandatory prison even when nothing was taken and no one was home. Prosecutors use the dwelling designation aggressively. Challenging what counts as a dwelling, and what the intent inside actually was, is where these cases are won.

Defenses to Brooklyn Burglary Charges

No criminal intent at entry. Entering to sleep, to retrieve your own property, or by mistake is trespass at most, not burglary.
License and privilege. If you had permission to be there, or reasonably believed you did, the unlawful entry element fails.
Dwelling challenges. Commercial spaces, construction sites, and mixed use buildings are litigated hard because dwelling status doubles the exposure.
Identification and forensics. Burglary cases lean on fingerprints, DNA touch evidence, and video, all of which have real limitations we exploit.
Possession of stolen property alternative. Possessing property later does not prove entry. The inference has limits courts recognize.

What Happens After the Arrest

Burglary cases follow the felony track: arraignment at 120 Schermerhorn Street, grand jury presentation, then litigation in Kings County Supreme Court at 320 Jay Street. Early defense investigation matters because intent at the moment of entry is the whole case, and the evidence of that intent is usually thin and circumstantial.

Related Charges We Defend

Brooklyn cases rarely involve a single charge. Prosecutors stack counts, and this one often travels with theft and larceny, robbery and weapons charges. When a case carries several counts, the defense has to answer all of them at once rather than one at a time. You can see every charge we defend in Brooklyn or read how felony and misdemeanor levels differ.

Why a Former Prosecutor Matters

As a former Assistant District Attorney in Brooklyn and Staten Island, Amel Spahija evaluated cases exactly like yours from the other side of the table. He knows how the DA's office weighs the evidence, when it reduces charges, and where its cases break. Read about the former prosecutor advantage, then see our recent Brooklyn case results.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is burglary the same as breaking and entering?

No breaking is required in New York. Walking through an open door counts if the entry was unlawful and you intended to commit a crime inside.

Can I be charged with burglary of a building I used to live in?

It happens frequently in domestic situations. The defense turns on whether you retained license or privilege to enter, which is very fact specific.

Nothing was stolen. Why am I charged with burglary?

Because burglary requires intent to commit any crime inside, not a completed theft. That intent element is also the weakest point of most burglary prosecutions.

What is the difference between trespass and burglary?

Intent. Unlawful entry alone is trespass, a misdemeanor. Unlawful entry with intent to commit a crime inside is burglary, a felony. The gap between them is measured in years of prison.

Free Consultation

The earlier we get involved, the more options exist. Call 646-453-4001 for a free consultation with a Spahija Law, or book 30 minutes with Amel directly.