Like many offences, unlawfully entering premises in Queensland carries surprisingly stiff penalties
The offence of entering the premises with intent to commit a crime carries a maximum of 14 years imprisonment, but that can be reduced to a maximum of 3 years if the charge remains in the Magistrates Court.
But on the other hand, if a burglary occurs and the offender actually commits an indictable offence, the offender faces a maximum term of life imprisonment.
In New South Wales for any offending of burglary to even reach 25 years as a maximum it requires the offender to have been armed with a weapon during the burglary or have wounded or caused grievous bodily harm to a person.
Contact Michael McMillan today on (07) 5619 6860 or 0409 273 430.
Is A Crime Committed If You Break Into Premises You Lease?
With the recent surge in domestic violence allegations have come an increasing number of incidents where one party to a tenancy has excluded the other after an interference with their domestic bliss, and the former has forcibly re-entered the premises, only to then face police involvement and inevitably a charge of break and entering.
Now the High Court has finally ruled on this matter. In the attached case of BA v The King [2024] HCA 14, the court was required to consider whether a tenant under a properly constituted tenancy agreement is a lawful authority permitting entry irrespective of the wishes expressed by the other party to the tenancy. And as can be seen, the majority of the court found that it was. In other words, it was not possible for that tenant to commit the crime of breaking and entering when he is authorized all to enter the property throughout the duration of the tenancy, even though he breaks down the front door to get in.
What makes this ruling even more interesting is that in October 2021 the Residential Tenancies and Rooming Accommodation Act 2008 was amended to include in it a very significant adjustment to what a tenant can do to exclude a co-tenant from a premises if that tenant “believes” he/she is fear domestic violence from their co-tenant. Section 211(2)(a) of that Act permits the tenant to use a tradesperson to change the locks in order to exclude their co-tenant. So, the question now is, does the law that falls from the case of BA v The King save the co-tenant from a charge of breaking and entering if he forcibly then enters the residence? Only time will tell.
Do The Aggravated Burglaries Always Attract Life Sentences?
The answer to that question is no. I was recently involved in the case of The King v [name redacted], (unreported decision of Judge Holliday KC, delivered Southport District Court on 28th January 2025), in which my client was sentenced for burglary whilst armed. That offence carried a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. At the date of sentence my client had served just under 2 months of pre-sentence custody. Despite having a prior criminal record of similar offending, the court accepted my submission that the significant rehabilitative work completed prior to sentence permitted it immediately release him without serving any extra custody.
This is good example of a situation where although the maximum potential penalty is very high indeed, that doesn’t translate into a generally high starting tariff for all cases involving that such a charge.
If you require any assistance with any charge of Burglary or Entering Premises Unlawfully, please call Michael McMillan who is only too willing to assist.
Contact Michael for Legal Advice
Contact Michael McMillan today on (07) 5619 6860 or 0409 273 430.