Robbery, Burglary, Forgery
and Theft Crimes

Robbery is the act of stealing (theft) but with force or threat of force. Many times robberies involve threat or use of a weapon, but it doesn’t require use of a weapon.  If a teenager walks up to another person and steals his cell phone right out of his hands, that is a robbery because it involved a theft with force.  All robberies are felonies.  The lowest level of robbery is the act of stealing something from someone through use of force “however slight”—according to the law.  Higher levels of robberies are the kind where threat or use of a weapon is involved, or where threat of bodily injury is involved or bodily injury is actually inflicted. 

With theft, robbery and burglary, if no major violence was involved the crime victim will often be more interested in getting their property back, or reimbursed as quickly as possible, even with the possibility of the charge against the accused being reduced.  However, it is not the crime victim’s call as to how the offense is prosecuted—that is up to the police and ultimately up to the district attorney.  But, in many of these situations, especially where a family member or friend or co-worker steals from another, the crime victim is less interested in fully prosecuting and having the offender several punished, and merely wants to be reimbursed.  This is called restitution—making the victim whole by paying back the money or value of the item stolen.  If the accused person was motivated by a drug habit, the crime victim may also be sympathetic and urging police and prosecutors to insist on completion of treatment as part of punishment, rather than simple incarceration.

If there is little or no violence during the crime, prosecutors have many options in these cases.  If there is no criminal record, prosecutors may sometimes consider ARD (a first offender’s probation program in Pennsylvania).  Prosecutors may also consider a disposition under the rules of criminal procedure in Pennsylvania that permits withdrawal of the charges upon payment of restitution (making the victim whole again) and payment of court costs for having started the prosecution.  These types of reductions to ARD or withdrawal of charges are not an option where violence was involved.

        Currently, fraud cases are becoming more and more common–everything from washing checks, to identity theft, creation of fraudulent bank accounts, and internet scams of all kinds.  These cases usually result in charges of forgery or access device fraud.  Larger fraud schemes often involve many people as part of a conspiracy, and sometimes a person is accused of playing only one part and doesn’t know all the other people involved, nor understand exactly the bigger picture of how the scheme worked.  These cases are more complex for police to investigate and police will often offer very lenient treatment to persons they identify as involved in exchange for cooperation leading to prosecution of the others. If you are approached by police with an accusation of this type, it’s time to get a criminal defense attorney before you try to negotiate anything with the police.

          If you are charged with theft, robbery, burglary, fraud or other related stealing offenses, it is important to hire an attorney as soon as you can, and well before the preliminary hearing.  Very often, an organized defense attorney can negotiate favorable terms that prevent incarceration, and perhaps even any conviction on your record.    

Burglary is the act of entering a residence or business without permission, and while entering, having the intent to commit another crime inside.  There are different gradings of burglaries, all felonies, and broken down into categories of whether it’s a residence or a business, and whether the place is occupied at that moment or not.  With burglary, typically the crime intended while entering is to steal something, but it doesn’t have to be.  If a man enters a woman’s house without permission with the intent to rape her inside, and he hears a noise and runs out of the house, he would not be charged with rape.  But, he could be charged with burglary because he entered without permission and with the intent to commit another crime inside, namely rape. 

One issue that often comes up with burglary charges is the question of what the crime was that the person intended while entering—especially if the person was under the influence.  Very often people under the influence confuse where they are going, or don’t even remember how they ended up in the place they are found.  In those instances, if it appears obvious to the prosecutor that there’s no clear cut crime intended, the person is usually only charged with criminal trespass, for entering without permission and perhaps scaring a victim in the process.  Criminal trespass is also a felony, but a much lower felony than burglary.