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Aggravated Burglary Charges In Victoria

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  • Aggravated Assault
  • Wilful Damage
  • Common Assault
  • Public Display of a Nazi Symbol or the Nazi Salute
  • Harassing a Witness
  • Recklessly Causing Serious Injury In Circumstances Of Gross Violence
  • Affray Charges In Victoria
  • Intentionally Causing Serious Injury in Circumstances of Gross Violence
  • Intentionally causing Serious Injury
  • Recklessly Causing Serious Injury
  • Intentionally Causing Injury
  • Administering Certain Substances
  • Threats to Kill and Assault Offences
  • Stalking
  • Negligently Causing Serious Injury
  • Extortion With Threat to Kill
  • Extortion, With Threats to Destroy and/or Endanger Property
  • Threatening to Prevent Arrest
  • Using a Firearm in the Commission of an Offence
  • Being Armed with Criminal Intent
  • Kidnapping
  • Robbery
  • Armed Robbery
  • Aggravated Burglary
  • Home Invasion
  • Aggravated Home Invasion
  • Arson
  • Criminal Damage
  • False Imprisonment
  • Public Nuisance
  • Riot
  • Rout Offence
  • Unlawful Assembly
  • Intentionally Causing a Very Serious Disease
  • Carjacking
  • Aggravated Carjacking

If You Have Been Accused of Aggravated Burglary Offence You Need Representation

What is Aggravated Burglary (Assault)?

Aggravated burglary is a serious offence provided for under s 77 Crimes Act 1958 (CA). Aggravated burglary is defined as a burglary that is committed with an offensive weapon  or whilst the occupant of the property is present.

Police Interview

Before an accused person is charged with aggravated burglary, an arrest interview is conducted by police for the purpose of evidence gathering and to provide the accused person with an opportunity to respond to the allegations. At this stage, police have investigated the offence and they may have a range of evidence against you that they will not inform you about. Before the interview, you are given the option to contact a lawyer for legal advice/support/representation.

MK Law can provide you with confidential legal advice that addresses all your concerns, such as whether you should make a statement to police, whether you need to undergo any DNA testing or whether, if formally charged, the Bail Act will be enlivened and we can advise you on the likelihood of you being remanded into custody. We can accompany you at the formal police interview if we believe it is in your best interests, however this usually only occurs in very serious circumstances.

Whether you are innocent or guilty of aggravated burglary, you have a right to silence and you have a right to do almost nothing in most circumstances. The police have the burden to prove your guilt to the requisite criminal standard of proof. To that end it is very important that you contact our office if you suspect you are going to be arrested and interviewed for the offence of aggravated burglary. We can provide you with legal advice to protect your rights for later on should your matter proceed to Court.

Questions to Consider Before Pleading Guilty or Not Guilty

To determine whether you have a good prospect of success in defending your aggravated burglary case, it is important to weigh up the following points:

  • Should I plead guilty/not guilty?
    • Did I enter the building?
    • Did I have consent to do this (was I a trespasser)?
    • Did I enter the building with the intent to steal something from the building, cause injury to a person inside the building or damage something in the building?
    • Was the weapon I had readily available whilst carrying out the burglary?
    • Did I know someone was inside the building?
  • What options are available to minimise my penalty?
  • Can a defence be relied on to argue my innocence?
 

These are all questions our criminal Lawyers are here to help answer and prepare a strong case for you.

What to Consider/Needs to be Established?

For a charge of aggravated burglary, it is important to consider what constitutes the offence (see definition above). The prosecution must be able to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that:

  1. You entered the building or part of a building
  2. You did so as a trespasser (without consent)
  3. At the time of entering the building, you intended to steal from the building, cause damage (to a person or thing) in the building or commit an offence (unlawful assault) on a person in the building
  4. You entered the building in aggravating circumstances (by possessing a weapon (and intending to use it for the burglary (even if it was not actually used)) or knowing or being reckless as to whether someone was inside the building)
 

a. The weapon was:

i. A firearm
ii. An imitation firearm
iii. An offensive weapon
iv. An explosive
 v. An imitation explosive

b. A defendant does not possess the weapon if they knew they had the weapon but they knew it could not be used (like concealing the weapon on themselves in a sealed bag)

c. The person inside the building cannot be a co-accused or someone helping to commit the offence

d. Reckless is a high threshold to satisfy

Will I be released on Bail or Remanded if charged with Aggravated Burglary?

If you are formally charged with Aggravated Burglary, the Bail Act 1977 provides that an accused person must only be released by a Magistrate as it is a schedule 2 offence. This means that if charged, you must be brought before a Court. 

To be released on bail, you must meet the Compelling reasons test. This requires an accused to demonstrate to the Court that there are certain circumstances that warrant being released on bail. The list is not exhaustive and is dependant on each individual. If this test is met, you must then pass the unacceptable risk test. 

For further info action on Bail, please click here.

Where Will my Matter be Heard?

This is a serious indictable offence which will proceed either through summary jurisdiction in limited circumstances or more commonly in the County Court.

Cases that involve the intent to cause damage or intent to assault are dealt with in the County or Supreme Courts of Victoria. From January 2022, cases that involve  intent to steal property (valued under $100,000) can be determined in the Magistrates Court if the Magistrate considers the seriousness of the aggravated burglary to be on a scale low enough to justify summary jurisdiction.

If the accused was a child (under 18 years) when the offence was allegedly committed, the matter will be dealt with in the Magistrates Court. Previously, in such circumstances the matter would have been dealt with in the Children’s Court.

Defences

If you are pleading not guilty, possible defences you have available will depend on the circumstances surrounding the alleged offending. Defences include: 

  • Self-defence – there is a factual dispute about the real facts to the case (what happened) – witnesses incorrectly identifying the defendant/s involved
    • Was this in the context of you acting under duress/necessity?
    • Was your response proportionate in the circumstances?
  • Mistake of fact – the defendant thought the victim consented to them entering the premises
  • Lack of intent – the prosecution failed to adequately adduce sufficient evidence that the accused had the required intention at the time of entering the property to steal, assault or cause damage or to use a weapon carried for the purposes of the burglary
 

Determining whether there is a valid defence requires in depth analysis and skill to identify whether there is merit in pleading not guilty. The expert criminal lawyers at MK Law can assist you in identifying any valid defences in your case.

Penalties

Aggravated burglary is a serious indictable offence. This offence attracts the second highest level of penalty after life imprisonment.   

If you are found guilty of aggravated burglary, the penalties are as follows: 

  • Term of imprisonment (level 2 – maximum 25 years – if heard in County or Supreme Court)
    • 2 years or maximum 5 years (charged with multiple offences) – if heard in Magistrates Court
    • Maximum 10 years – if the defendant intended to steal when inside the building
      • As reported by the Sentencing Advisory Council, the average longest sentence is 8 years and the average shortest sentence is 2 years
 

Aggravated burglary is a Category 1 offence and is subject to mandatory imprisonment (Sentencing Act 1991 (Vic) s 10AC(1) (SA)). The Court must impose a sentence of imprisonment with a non-parole period of at least 3 years if found guilty. This does not apply to defendants under 18 years or if there are “special circumstances” that warrant not imposing a term of imprisonment (ss 10AC and 10AD SA).    

Assault Charges

  • Aggravated Assault
  • Wilful Damage
  • Common Assault
  • Public Display of a Nazi Symbol or the Nazi Salute
  • Harassing a Witness
  • Recklessly Causing Serious Injury In Circumstances Of Gross Violence
  • Affray Charges In Victoria
  • Intentionally Causing Serious Injury in Circumstances of Gross Violence
  • Intentionally causing Serious Injury
  • Recklessly Causing Serious Injury
  • Intentionally Causing Injury
  • Administering Certain Substances
  • Threats to Kill and Assault Offences
  • Stalking
  • Negligently Causing Serious Injury
  • Extortion With Threat to Kill
  • Extortion, With Threats to Destroy and/or Endanger Property
  • Threatening to Prevent Arrest
  • Using a Firearm in the Commission of an Offence
  • Being Armed with Criminal Intent
  • Kidnapping
  • Robbery
  • Armed Robbery
  • Aggravated Burglary
  • Home Invasion
  • Aggravated Home Invasion
  • Arson
  • Criminal Damage
  • False Imprisonment
  • Public Nuisance
  • Riot
  • Rout Offence
  • Unlawful Assembly
  • Intentionally Causing a Very Serious Disease
  • Carjacking
  • Aggravated Carjacking

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What are the Next Steps?

If you have been charged with aggravated burglary, contact our office immediately for expert legal advice. We can assist in making an application for bail as well as represent you in Court to obtain the best outcome.

Our criminal lawyers at MK Law can review your case and determine the merits of contesting this charge. If the evidence is strong, our minds will turn to how we can mitigate the final outcome to ensure you get the most favourable outcome in the circumstances. Contact our office today on 1800 130 120 to discuss your case with our experts today.

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  • 2/212 Barkly Street, St Kilda Victoria, 3182 Australia
  • 1800 130 120
  • marcus@mklawfirm.com.au
Mk Law

Top 5 firms by reputation dealing with traffic and criminal law matters.

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MK Law
2/212 Barkly Street, St Kilda
Victoria, 3182
Australia

Phone: 1800 130 120
Email: marcus@mklawfirm.com.au

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