Charged with Burglary? Contact a Skilled Burglary Defense Lawyer in Chicago

Getting charged with burglary is quite serious. It is a felony charge that is often used in conjunction with other charges, such as breaking and entering. The term “burglary” is often used to describe all manners of criminal trespassing.

Unlike other crimes of physical property theft, burglary implies a premeditated intent to commit a crime. Burglary is the uninvited and undesired entry of another person’s property and/or domicile resulting in with the knowledge and purpose of committing a crime while inside the premises.

In Chicago, these charges are highly penalized by the courts. It is important to understand that due to the premeditation associated with burglary, it is a criminal offense not taken lightly and prosecuted with vigor. In other words, if you are facing burglary charges, you may be in for an uphill battle and must prepare accordingly.

The first step in preparation is hiring a top-notch Chicago burglary defense lawyer like Vadim A. Glozman.

Experience Matters in Defending Burglary Cases

A top-notch Chicago burglary defense attorney is one that actually has experience in defending clients in state and federal court.  You should not retain an attorney looking to cut a plea deal right off the bat. You deserve aggressive and skilled representation. Vadim A. Glozman has this the experience to be an effective defense lawyer for your case.

He has defended clients in complex federal matters including conspiracy, mortgage fraud, health care fraud, bank fraud, mail/wire fraud, theft of trade secrets, and public corruption, as well as providing zealous advocacy for those charged with drug crimes, violent crimes, theft, weapons charges, and various other state charges.

Attorney Glozman also takes pride in the fact that he represents clients throughout all stages of litigation including grand jury investigations, verdicts, sentencing, and appeals. He understands that no two cases are alike and provides an individualized assessment and approach to every case he handles in order to ensure the best possible outcome for his clients.

What Constitutes Burglary Under Illinois Law?

Illinois law defines the criminal offense of residential burglary in 720 ILCS 5/19-3. The statutory provision states that burglary consists of:

• The accused knowingly enters or remains;
• Within the dwelling of another person or any portion of the dwelling;
• With the intent to commit a theft or felony.

This offense is a specific intent offense, which means in this context that the prosecutor must prove that the accused had the specific intent to commit a felony or theft offense inside the residential dwelling. If the prosecutor cannot prove this specific intent, the prosecutor typically will be forced to settle for a potential conviction of Criminal Trespass to a Residence, which is a misdemeanor rather than a felony so court supervision is available as a potential sentence.

When the evidence against my client is compelling, I will do all I can to negotiate tenaciously to obtain a reduction in the charge from Residential Burglary to Criminal Trespass or a charge that does not involve a residential dwelling.

Whereas Residential Burglary may result in a sentence from 4 to 15 years with no option for regular probation as a sentence, simple burglary that does not involve a residential structure is a Class 2 criminal offense that can result in a sentence of 3 to 7 years, but a 2 year term of probation is available as an alternative if the accused has no previous convictions of a Class 2 felony or greater during the prior 10 year period. There is also the possibility of TASC probation, otherwise known as drug probation, for residential cases where it is applicable.

How to Defend Against Burglary Charges in Chicago

While the specific defense strategy in your burglary criminal case will be based on its unique facts, Vadim A. Glozman will work diligently to establish the failure of the prosecution to prove every element of the criminal offense beyond a reasonable doubt.

He also frequently moves to have incriminating evidence and statements excluded from the case based on violations of the Constitutional rights of his clients or as “fruit of the poisonous tree” when these violations lead to discovery of incriminating evidence.

Some potential defenses that he may deploy include:

• Challenging the accuracy and reliability of witness identification
• Exposing breaks in the chain of custody to prevent introduction of certain evidence
• Violations of Miranda rights to have counsel present during questioning and against self-incrimination
• Unlawful search and seizures based on lack of a warrant or valid exception to the warrant requirement
• Searches that are improperly executed, such as exceeding the scope of the warrant
• Establishing police misconduct that undermines the officer’s testimony
• Revealing that the structure was not a residential dwelling
• Proving lack of specific intent required to convict the accused of the crime
• Exposing sloppy police investigative techniques when gathering forensic evidence that compromises the reliability of the evidence

Contact a Skilled Burglary Defense Lawyer in Chicago Today

Chicago defense attorney Vadim A. Glozman is dedicated to defending the freedom, rights and reputation of his clients.

He will aggressively explore defense strategies to obtain dismissal of the charges or acquittal at trial while also pursuing diversion options to keep his clients out of jail and to maintain a clean criminal record.