Charged With Trespassing On Your Own Property: What To Know
What you know about trespassing might be far from the complete story. Being arrested for trespassing may be a surprise, but being arrested for doing so on your own property can seem like a huge mistake on the part of law enforcement. Read on and learn how this can happen.
What is Criminal Trespassing?
Trespassing is entering a property without permission. The property in question can be land, a residence, or even a business. In most states, you cannot accidentally trespass because if you did not know you were encroaching on private property, you may not have committed a crime. Most have seen signs posted about trespassing and those signs provide legal notice not to enter. The other way to give notice is by informing a trespasser that they will be charged with trespassing if they enter the property again. While the circumstances are not common, you can also be charged with trespassing on your own property, as explained below:
Tenant Rights
When can you own a home and still be charged with trespassing? When you are a landlord leasing space to a tenant, laws tend to protect the rights of the tenant to privacy. While the landlord has certain rights as the owner, the tenant has rights too because they are in possession of the property. Landlords must follow the state laws when it comes to notice and reasons for entering. For example, many apartment dwellers give the right to pest control or maintenance personnel to enter the home once notified.
Restraining Orders
Both owners and renters may be barred from entering their property if a restraining order is in place. Like the tenant-landlord issue above, the restraining order petitioner has the right of possession of the home until the order expires. Violating a restraining order can bring charges not only of trespassing but other, more serious charges.
Married and Separated
Even if both names are on the lease or deed, one party may have a right to possess the home during the separation period. Usually, this sort of issue comes about when one party has moved out of the house but continues to enter the home without the permission of the other party. The way separated parties obtain possession of the home in the first place is through a court order, but orders may not always be necessary. This is one case in which possession really is nine-tenths of the law.
It's easy to unknowingly commit a crime when it comes to trespassing. Those convicted can face anything from fines to jail time and more. Speak to a local attorney and find out more about trespassing on your own property.