The Penalty for Residential Burglary in Illinois

Committing residential burglary in Illinois is a serious offense that can carry a heavy sentence with it as a penalty. The crime itself can be described as an individual who enters into the living space of another person without permission to willingly steal or commit a felony crime. Being charged with residential burglary in Illinois is a Class 1 felony offense. Class 1 felony offenses in Illinois come with a prison sentence that ranges from 4 years in prison up to 15 years in prison. Your exact sentence will be determined by the circumstances surrounding the incident itself. 

If you have been charged with residential burglary, you will need a criminal defense lawyer to represent you during trial. A good criminal defense lawyer will seek to scrutinize the evidence and testimony of witnesses used by the prosecution to help cast reasonable doubt on your guilt for committing this crime. If there is enough evidence to prove that you did in fact commit a crime, the attorney will build a case with the intent to have the charge lessened to Criminal Trespass to Residence. This charge is only a Class A misdemeanor and may only require court supervision rather than serving jail time.