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Burglary is a serious crime in Nevada. If you are charged with the crime of burglary, your first action should be to retain experienced Nevada Burglary Defense attorney Jherna Shahani.
According to NRS 205.060, burglary has occurred in situations when a person unlawfully enters or remains in a building with the intent of engaging in criminal activity, regardless of the time of day. A residential burglary is a felony punishable by 1 to 10 years in state prison. If the defendant had a deadly weapon while committing the burglary, the prison sentence is 2 to 15 years in prison.
Burglary involving assault and battery obviously are very serious and increase the chances of stiffer penalties and lengthier jail times.
The specific criminal activities can include, but not be limited to, the intent to commit grand or petit larceny, assault or battery on another person, or any other kind of felony.
In other words, burglary can occur in broad daylight and involve violence against another person and still qualify as burglary. The statute goes on to state the building in question can include:
• Personal Dwellings
Homes, apartments, trailers, condominiums, hotels, or any place where another person dwells, lives, or otherwise hangs their hat up at the end of the day.
• Business Structures
Shops, bodegas, banks, restaurants, kiosks, car dealerships, or any kind of structure where official business transactions have been known to occur.
• Motor Vehicles
A car or truck can also be burglarized. The act of entering a vehicle and stealing contents from inside would qualify as burglary. Because the law specifies the intent to commit assault or battery on another person can be part of burglary, the act assaulting the vehicle’s owner would likely increase penalties if convicted.
• Other Structures
If the previous examples do not cover the structure in question, the state statute provides a catch-all term for “any other structures” not explicitly covered by the previous definitions.
Specific Crimes
In addition to the structures, state statutes break down the definitions of the crimes involved with burglary.
• Petty Larceny
The items and money that were stolen total less than $1,200 in value.
• Grand Larceny
Everything stolen had a value greater than $1,200.
• Battery
Generally refers to any unlawful physical contact, although usually used in reference to beatings or physical acts of violence.
• Assault
It is making a person feel as though physical violence could occur. It’s important to understand that actual physical contact does not have to occur for assault to apply; verbal threats and the fear that violence could occur both qualify as types of assault.
In many states, breaking and entering is a commonplace term for burglary. But in Nevada, the breaking and entering or “forcible entry” is considered a separate crime, called home invasion.
Burglaries can be committed without having to break in, meaning they can gain entry through unlocked door or similar unforced entry. In Nevada, breaking and entering is a separate charge, and like the crimes of assault and battery, can be added charges.
If you have been charged with a crime in Las Vegas, Henderson, Clark County, Laughlin, Mesquite, Pahrump, Boulder City or elsewhere in Nevada, call Your Defender at Law at 702-625-7551 for a FREE consultation.
Jherna Shahani, Esq. provides loyalty, skill, personal attention, and care to every case. Your future matters to you – and it needs to matter to your attorney too
Assault is the unlawful attempt to use physical force on another person or intentionally place another in reasonable apprehension of immediate bodily harm.
Put simply, assault can be where you intended to use physical force but miss or where you threaten bodily harm.
Nevada law defines a deadly weapon as “any instrument which, if used in the ordinary manner contemplated by its design and construction, will or is likely to cause substantial bodily harm or death” or “any weapon, device, instrument, material or substance which, under the circumstances in which it is used, attempted to be used or threatened to be used, is readily capable of causing substantial bodily harm or death.”NRS 193.165
Of course, a knife or gun falls into this category, but other objects, if used to inflict injury, are classified as deadly weapons. For instance, bats, screwdrivers, rocks, sticks, bottles, and other household items can all be classified as deadly weapons.
Misdemeanor Assault
If the assault was not with a deadly weapon, not on a protected person and not by an inmate or person on probation/parole, then assault is a misdemeanor punishable by:
Assault with a Deadly Weapon
All assaults with a deadly weapon are Category B Felonies punishable by:
Assault on a Protected Person without a Deadly Weapon
If the assault is without a deadly weapon but against a protected person and the assaulter knew or should have known that the victim was a protected person, the assault is a gross misdemeanor punishable by:
Assault without a Deadly Weapon on a Protected Person by an Inmate or a Person on Probation/Parole.
If an inmate or person on probation/parole commits an assault without a deadly weapon, and the assault was made on a protected person and the assaulter knew or should have known that the victim was a protected person, the assault is a Category D Felony punishable:
People in Nevada can defend themselves if they reasonably believe they are facing an urgent or pressing threat of bodily harm, and the non-aggressor used no more violence then necessary to protect themselves.
If a person did not commit assault but the alleged victim lied, then the person is not guilty of assault. A skilled attorney is necessary to show the court that the alleged victim was not truthful and his testimony should be disregarded.
If you have been charged with assault in Las Vegas, Henderson, Clark County, Laughlin, Mesquite, Pahrump, Boulder City or elsewhere in Nevada, call Your Defender at Law at 702-625-7551 for a FREE consultation.
Jherna Shahani, Esq. provides loyalty, skill, personal attention, and care to every case. Advice from an attorney is just a phone call away, and you are guaranteed a same day response; it is just that important.