Entering Automobile Criminal Defense

Defending Entering Automobile Cases In Cobb County And In The Atlanta-Metropolitan Area

The Offense

Elements Of the Crime

The official title of this criminal offense is 'Entering Automobile Or Other Motor Vehicle With Intent To Commit Theft Or Felony.' Better known state-wide by criminal defendants, criminal defense attorneys, prosecutors and judges simply as 'Entering Auto,' Georgia Code 16-8-18 defines this criminal offense as follows:

If any person shall enter any automobile or other motor vehicle with the intent to commit a theft or a felony, he shall be guilty of a felony and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than one nor more than five years, or, in the discretion of the trial judge, as for a misdemeanor.

If the person is sentenced for a felony, the maximum fine is $100,000.00, and if sentenced for a misdemeanor, the maximum fine is $1,000.00.

This Crime Has Now Become A Priority For Many Prosecutors

If you have turned on and watched the news in recent years, you undoubtedly would have heard of the recent surge of car break-ins, particularly in and around the Atlanta-metropolitan area. This has quickly become an important issue, and therefore politicians, law enforcement officials, and district attorneys have all publicly announced their goal to crack down on this particular crime.

As such, many police departments, prosecuting offices and other local officials have devised their own particular strategies and task-forces to deal with this issue, and their respective focus and energy on this type of crime have increased accordingly.

In short, many prosecutors are not going easy on this type of case, and many judges aren't, either. It has quickly become a serious offense with serious sentencing ramifications, and you need to hire an experienced attorney as quickly as possible in order to defend yourself.

If I Was Arrested Before Anything Was Taken, How Can I Be Charged?

Always focus on how the statute is worded. In this case, all the law requires is that a person enter an automobile with the intent to commit a theft or a felony. It is not a requirement that the person actually complete the theft. Although the statute includes the phrase "or a felony," in a large majority of these cases the defendant is accused of committing a theft inside of the automobile. The State has to prove that the person actually intended to commit this theft. This can be accomplished by examining all of the particular circumstances in the case. For example, if a person is found in the backseat of a car placing items into a bag after he had broken out the vehicle's window, and that person and the owner of the vehicle did not know each other, the prosecutor may feel that he or she has a strong case of entering auto. On the other hand, if the person in the backseat simply opened the car door and began removing items, and that person is the vehicle owner's son, then that is a different case entirely.

How Can I Be Charged With Both Entering Auto And Theft By Taking?

This is both a common question and a very good one.

There is a legal principle called the "merger doctrine." Simply put, if a defendant is found guilty of or pleads guilty to criminal charges, then some of these charges may "merge" into others for the purposes of sentencing. Also commonly known as a "lesser-included offense," Georgia Code 16-1-6 states that one crime is included within another when:

(1) It is established by proof of the same or less than all the facts or a less culpable mental state than is required to establish the commission of the crime charged; or

(2) It differs from the crime charged only in the respect that a less serious injury or risk of injury to the same person, property, or public interest or a lesser kind of culpability suffices to establish its commission.

An analysis of section (1) is known as the "required evidence test." This test is used to determine whether one of the crimes was established by proof of the same or less than all the facts that were required to establish the other crime, and therefore is considered a lesser-included offense of that other crime. For example, theft is a crime where a person simply takes the property of another without permission. Robbery is a crime that involves taking another's property without permission by using force or intimidation. The crime of theft, therefore, will merge into the crime of robbery because the elements needed to convict for theft are also needed to convict for robbery, but robbery also requires additional elements-the use of force or intimidation.

A defendant will have "completed" the crime of entering auto once that person entered the vehicle with the intent to commit a theft. The crime of theft by taking is completed once that person has taken items that do not belong to him without the owner's permission, regardless of where those items are located. Therefore, different elements have to be demonstrated to find that person guilty of both crimes, and so the crime of entering auto does not merge with the crime of theft by taking, and a criminal defendant can be legally convicted of both offenses.

Addison Waid has years of experience both prosecuting and defending entering auto cases.

Call The Law Office of Addison C. Waid IV, LLC today at 770-727-1088 or contact us online to see how he can help you defend this type of criminal case.