Property Crimes Attorney

Crimes where there is the usage of another person’s property without their permission, destruction of that property or an alteration of it is referred to as property crimes. There are lots of different offenses which fall under property crime such as trespassing, robbery, burglary, criminally minded mischief, shoplifting, theft etc.

Even though the majority of property related crimes have minor penalties, there are many that could have very serious consequences which would impact your entire life in a very negative way for many years.

Punishment For Property Crimes Depends On Value

When it comes to penalties for property crimes, punishment will depend on the actual value of the property that was damaged, changed or taken.

If a public property is damaged that is needed for society, then this would be a felony. For example, damage done to public buildings or roadways may be construed as property crimes. There are many other things that will have to be considered in sentencing such as if violence was used, weapons used in the commission or even drugs. According to the particular circumstances of your case, it is possible that you would incur heavy court fines as well as many years in prison.

Property Crimes Most Common Crime In Colorado

In Colorado, property crime is actually among the most common crimes according to FBI statistics.

In 2019, property crime made up 87% of all the crime committed this year in Colorado, which was about 149,189 crimes. This is a very distressing trend which will most likely increase into 2022.

Property crime is a very broad category and includes offenses where public or private property is damaged. We will now look at the most popular types of crimes in Colorado.

Arson

In Colorado, arson is a very popular crime and it is basically when you intentionally set fire or try to set fire to property with the intention of defacing it or destroying it. In many cases, arson is a part of a plot to get insurance money. The consequences of this crime can be very severe, especially if a person or persons are injured or if they die.

Burglary

This is typically called breaking and entering and it is when you enter the property of another person without their permission to commit a crime. In Colorado, the typical types of burglary include theft. However, in this type of crime, other crimes against property or even persons can also happen. In Colorado, this is a felony and the penalty will be according to the circumstances and particular details of the situation/crime.

Criminal Mischief

The willful defacing of another person’s property without their consent is referred to as criminal mischief. It is also called vandalism and one popular type of vandalism is when you spray paint another person’s property or public property.

Defacing Property

When a historical monument is defaced, this is called a class 2 misdemeanor. This means that you get get as much as 1 year in prison for it.

Shoplifting

Another very common type of crime in Colorado is shoplifting. This is when you take goods from a retail business without paying. There are many anti-shoplifting procedures that stores in Colorado have implemented, however, it is still a very common crime.

Theft

This is when you take another person’s belongings without their consent and it is the simplest type of property crime.

Vandalism

There are many things that are referred to as vandalism such as defacing another person’s property, spraying graffiti on it, breaking windows etc. Basically, once you do anything to lower the value of another person’s property without their permission it is known as vandalism. These have very serious penalties in this state.

Penalties For Colorado Property Crimes

There are various sentencing ranges for different felonies. However, there are many other things that can impact the decision taken by the judge in sentencing. There are particular enhancements that can be used accordingly if particular factors are present.

It is possible for an enhancement to increase your prison sentence from 5 years to as many as 20 years.

There are certain circumstances where a person who is charged may not be sentenced. For example, if the only reason the person took the property is if they thought that they actually owned it. In these instances, it is imperative that they talk to an excellent criminal defense attorney for advice and representation.

You Will Need A Great Criminal Attorney If Charged With Property Crimes

If you are accused of any type of property crime,, you need to have a professional and experienced Colorado Springs criminal lawyer that is capable of effectively contesting these enhancements.