Criminal Investigations Exam 2Chapter 9: Burglary • Introductiono Early common law defined burglary as “breaking and entering of the dwelling of another, in the nighttime, with intent to commit a felony therein”o Conviction of burglary required the proof of each element of the definitiono States may distinguish among burglaries depending on the presence/absence of physical breaking or depending on the suspects nature Florida specifies that a burglary involving breaking and entering is punishable by imprisonment to 20 years and without breaking is 10 years In New York punishments are stricter for burglaries committed at night by an armed suspect then daytime burglaries by unarmed suspects o Modern definition of burglary An individual who without authority, knowingly enters, a building or structure, with the intent to commit a felony or theft • Current State of Burglaryo UCR established that over 2,183,000 burglaries reported during recent year o Only 50% of burglary victims actually report the offense to the policeo Three main factors responsible for the decline in burglaries: Drug addicts have switched from burglary to more probable cash producing crime of robbery An increase in home security devices  Greater number of career burglars have been arrested and given long sentences o Burglary currently constitutes 18 percent of all major felony crime o Every 15 seconds a burglary occurso 2nd highest crime, 1st common felony o Police clear by arrest approx 13 percent of all reported burglaries o Typical burglary occurs in a residence in the daytime during the summer months o Residential burglaries account for 66% of burglaries b/c Ease of entry Lack of detection • Offender Characteristicso UCR indicates a typical burglary suspect is a White male Under the age of 25 Living in a metropolitan area o 17% of arrested burglary suspects are under the age of 18 The highest degree of juvenile involvement is found in small cities where juveniles account for 25% of burglary arrests o Burglary suspects are more prone to violence than previously assumed Burglary leads to higher crimes if a person is home• EX: Rape, assault, robberies  Victims are at home during burglaries 13% of all cases o Substantial percentage of household burglaries committed by suspects related to or known to the victim  37% of all burglaries are by known suspects 48% by stranger suspects • Burglary Typeso Residential 2/3 burglaries reported are of residences  Involve places of habitation for one or more people o Business Involve any type of business operation or service  Typically occur during the hours of darkness and involve individuals of higher levels of skill • The use of difficult tools to entero General Dwelling  Do not occur as often as often as residential or business burglaries • Ex: Private/medical offices, government buildings, schools, churches • Methods of Operationo Aka Modus Operandi, pertains to the notion that human behavior tends to repeat itself o Variable of successful past usage and situational stress often revert to familiar past actions by the burglar o Methods of entry, search and exit are quite standardized and will be used in the commission of past and future crimes by the same suspect o Residential methods Entry• The location selected by the burglar to enter the dwelling • Burglar selects point of entry on following factorso Public visibilityo Degree of resistanceo And time necessary to gain entry • Typical residential burglar employs only two basic methods of forced entryo Celluloid Insertion Insertion of a flexible plastic like object between the door and the frame then broughtdown until it strikes the latch releasing the spring and unlocking the door• Ex: credit card, plastic ruler  Only works for spring latch locks o Physical force Forcing a fist, elbow, or foot through a window or sliding glass door may be used  Use of crowbar, screwdriver, or other metal tool• Lock picks and tension wrenches are very effective devices in the hands of skilled burglars • The pick gun enables a burglar to pick a lock mechanically Search • Not as consistent as method of entry • How the burglar searches for property is commonly known as prowl • Start in one room and look for valuable items/items of resale Exit• Point of exit where the suspect leaves• Usually the same as the point of entry o Business and General Dwelling Methods  Entry• This burglar is often more skilled • Often equipped with tools necessary to effect entry on superior locking devices • Windows and skylights are preferred areas of entry • Force is applied in a variety of ways o Glass may be cut, door pried or picked, bars burned or cut away  Search• Prowl is shorter in duration and more specific then in residential • Since business burglaries are the result of a lot of pre planning the location of valuable items is known• The successful entry of a safe depends on three factorso The size of the safeo Skill of burglar o Degree of preplanning involved • All forcible safe entry methods involve attacking the safe at its weak points or attacking the locking mechanism itself • Rip attack or peel job method involves peeling metal sheets from a weakened corner locationo Crowbar is then inserted into a drilled hole and leverage applied • Many safes are forced by punch attack o Preferred method of safe burglar o Clean/quite methodo Safe dial is forced off by a blow from a sledgehammer leaving spindle open to attack • No signs of forced entry to a safe conclude 3 thingso Master burglar has manipulated dial o Door wasn’t properly locked o Opened by someone who knew combination  Exit• Often same as point of entry • Suspects will exit through the same entry point that they bypassed the alarm • Investigative procedures o Encompass three broad areas Crime scene Official records Property recoveryo The crime scene Investigator must always be alert to the possibility of a staged burglary • Insurance fraud is the most common motivation for false burglary  A detailed listing of missing property is very important • Serial numbers  Neighborhood check needs to be attempted• Residences or business in reasonable radius should be checked foro Were strangers observedo Unfamiliar automobiles o Unusual soundso Pertinent personal factors (divorce, bad children)o Official Records  When