Thursday, 4:30 PM
Appeals court: burglary can begin at the storm door
By Globe Staff
An intruder who simply sticks a hand through your window or forces open a locked storm door is still committing burglary, the Massachusetts State Appeals Court ruled today.
The court denied an appeal by a man who was convicted of unarmed burglary. It rejected his claims that prosecutors had failed to prove that an "entry" had occurred.
Prosecutors said the defendant, Aaron Porter, had picked the house of veteran Springfield police Detective William Kelly to burgle in early June 2004.
At around midnight, the detective checked to make sure all his windows and doors were locked. Then he heard a noise. Checking outside, he found the defendant standing on the front porch between the storm door and the front door, with both hands on the front door handle.
Kelly later found a pair of wire cutters between the front door and the storm door, and found that the storm door had been damaged.
The appeals court said the "defendant's presence between the previously locked storm door and the front door, with his hands on the front door handle, is enough to constitute an entry."
The window to a computer room was also found open. The screws had been removed from the lock and blinds had been knocked off the windowsill.
The court said a jury could also reasonably infer from that evidence that the defendant had reached into the house.
"Because a reasonable jury could find that the defendant entered the protected enclosure either at the front door or through the window, there was sufficient evidence that an 'entry' occurred, the court ruled.
