Our expert criminal lawyers for stealing property from dwelling or house offences can help you:
- Obtain bail.
- Be found not guilty.
- Receive a lenient sentence, like no conviction and no prison.
You will be represented by a team of award-winning criminal lawyers, with 500+ five-star Google reviews, who offer fixed fees and free first consultations.
You can read our reviews here.
Steal property from dwelling or a house
Our criminal defence lawyers have had great success defending charges of stealing from a dwelling or house. We do so by using a range of defences that are available to us, including identification (you were not the person who stole the property), that the client intended to return the property that was taken, or that the property belonged to the client or that he believed he had a claim of right to it.
For those that chose to please guilty to stealing property in a dwelling-house, we have a proven track record of getting the best possible results for them. We keep our clients out of jail and get them section 10s, where no conviction is recorded on their record.
What is Stealing property in a dwelling-house
Stealing property in a dwelling-house, as the name suggests, is the act of stealing from someone’s house, in circumstances where you were lawfully in their home with the consent of the occupants. This is to be contrasted with a break and enter, where there is no consent for the person who steals property to be in the home and the home has been entered unlawfully.
What is a dwelling house?
A dwelling house is any house, vehicle, or boat that a person lives in or is designed for a person to live in, even if at the time nobody is living there.
The definition of a Dwelling-house includes;
(a) any building or other structure intended for occupation as a dwelling and capable of being so occupied, although it has never been so occupied,
(b) a boat or vehicle in or on which any person resides, and
(c) any building or other structure within the same curtilage as a dwelling-house and occupied therewith or whose use is ancillary to the occupation of the dwelling-house.”
What is stealing according to the law in NSW
Stealing is referred to as larceny under the law in NSW. Stealing is the act of taking or carrying away property that isn’t owned or possessed by you, where your intent is to permanently deprive the owner of the property, and where the owner did not consent to you taking it. The property must be capable of being moved to steal and it must have some value. In some instances, it can also be deemed stealing if you found something and decided to keep it. This is called larceny by finding.
It is important to note that it is not stealing if the property was borrowed or taken for a temporary purpose with the intention of returning the property.
What is stealing from a dwelling with menace?
Stealing from a dwelling house with menaces is a more serious offence than stealing from a dwelling house. The base offence is the same as stealing from a dwelling, but it includes an additional ‘element’ for the police to prove, being menacing behaviour was used to take the property.
“Menaces” includes acting in a threatening manner to take action that causes someone of normal stability and courage to act unwillingly out of fear. This is true only in circumstances where you were aware that the other person was vulnerable to that threat.
Pleading not guilty
You will be found not guilty of stealing from a dwelling house if the prosecution cannot prove beyond a reasonable doubt that you:
- Took property that was capable of being stolen,
- That the property was in a dwelling-house,
- That the property was not yours,
- That you took the property without the owner’s consent,
- That you intended to permanently deprive the owner of the property.
You can read more information about pleading not guilty here.
You will be found not guilty of stealing from a dwelling house with menaces if the prosecution cannot prove beyond a reasonable doubt each of the above, as well as
- That you threatened or menaced someone who was in the dwelling-house
Common defences include:
- Claim of Right,
- You did not intend to permanently deprive the owner,
- The property was not taken from a dwelling house,
- Honest mistake.
- Duress.
Pleading guilty
If you are guilty of stealing from a dwelling-house and you believe that the prosecution can prove beyond a reasonable doubt that you are guilty of this offence, it is normally best to plead guilty. It might also be possible for your criminal lawyer to negotiate with the prosecution for you to plead guilty to less serious facts relating to the case.
If found guilty of stealing from a dwelling house, you could be facing a maximum prison sentence of 7 years imprisonment.
If found guilty of stealing from a dwelling house with menace, you could be facing a maximum penalty of 14 years imprisonment.
When sentencing you for your charge, the courts will consider several factors including what was stolen, its value and the nature of the offence. Subjective factors will also be considered such as if this is your first offence if you have shown real remorse, the likelihood of rehabilitation, and good character references amongst other things.
You can read more about pleading guilty here.
Do I need references?
We believe references are an extremely important part of a plea of guilty in court. Read about court processes and how to write a good character reference.
Contact Australian Criminal Law Group
Our criminal lawyers, with 500+ five-star Google reviews, can beat your steal property from dwelling or house charge or obtain a lenient sentence for you if you plead guilty.
Call us on (02) 8815 8167 for your free first conference or submit a website enquiry.
Sources:
- NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research, NSW Recorded Crime Statistics quarterly update March 2022, Published June 2022 (accessed 5 June 2022 at 15:02) https://www.bocsar.nsw.gov.au/Pages/bocsar_publication/Pub_Summary/RCS-Quarterly/RCS2022Q1-PageSummary.aspx
- NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research, NSW Criminal Courts Statistics Jan 2017-Dec 2021, Published June 2022 (accessed 5 June 2022 at 15:02) https://www.bocsar.nsw.gov.au/Pages/bocsar_publication/Pub_Summary/CCS-Annual/Criminal-Court-Statistics-Dec-2021.aspx
- Crimes Act 1900 No 40, Current version for 27 March 2021 to date (accessed 7 August 2021 at 14:50) https://legislation.nsw.gov.au/view/html/inforce/current/act-1900-040
This information is intended as a general guide to law only. It should not be relied on as legal advice, and it is recommended that you speak with a qualified lawyer about your situation.
Australian Criminal Law Group and its suppliers make every reasonable effort to ensure the accuracy and validity of the information provided on its web pages. At the time of updating, this information was correct, however, given the laws in NSW and Australia are continually changing, the Australian Criminal Law Group makes no warranties or representations as to its accuracy.