Criminal Investigations Exam 2 Chapter 9 Burglary Introduction Current State of Burglary year o 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 definition o 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 o UCR established that over 2 183 000 burglaries reported during recent o Only 50 of burglary victims actually report the offense to the police o 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 occurs o 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 Characteristics o 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 Types o Residential o Business 2 3 burglaries reported are of residences Involve places of habitation for one or more people 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 enter o General Dwelling Do not occur as often as often as residential or business burglaries Ex Private medical offices government buildings schools Methods of Operation churches repeat itself o Aka Modus Operandi pertains to the notion that human behavior tends to 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 factors o Public visibility o Degree of resistance o And time necessary to gain entry Typical residential burglar employs only two basic methods of forced entry o Celluloid Insertion Insertion of a flexible plastic like object between the door and the frame then brought down 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 Start in one room and look for valuable items items of as prowl resale Point of exit where the suspect leaves Usually the same as the point of entry o Business and General Dwelling Methods Exit 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 Search or cut away 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 factors o The size of the safe o 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 location o 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 method o 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 things o 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 Investigative procedures bypassed the alarm o Encompass three broad areas Crime scene Official records Property recovery o 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 for o Were strangers observed o Unfamiliar automobiles o Unusual sounds o Pertinent personal factors divorce bad children When identity of suspect is known or suspected CJ records are invaluable to the investigation Criminal history can be a starting point for the construction of the MO Comparison of MO of current cases of a suspect can be helpful Officers can submit MO information from a current case to obtain matching