It’s easy to confuse the two crimes of burglary and home invasion, but there are some distinctions under Delaware state law. Our Delaware alarm company will outline some of the most important differences here, so that you can be an advocate for the law in the event that you are ever a victim of either crime.
In Delaware, burglary is the crime of breaking and entering into a home with the intent to commit a felony inside. That felony does not necessarily need to be theft. Our state has broadened the definition of burglary to include crimes where a person is asked to leave, but stays with the intention to commit a crime (this scenario most often applies to businesses).
You may have heard that in Delaware, burglary is more serious if the crime is committed at night. That’s true; under Delaware law, a burglary is classified as first degree burglary if it is committed at night, in a private residence, and with a weapon. How is this different from home invasion? Home invasion is more serious, in that it checks all the same boxes as first degree burglary and the criminal attempts to commit robbery, assault, rape, murder, manslaughter, or kidnapping during the incident.
Of course, you will only need to be concerned about the differences between home invasion and burglary in Delaware if you are ever victimized. Hopefully, you are arming your security system day and night so that anyone who attempts to compromise the security of your home or business will be stopped in his tracks. After all, your system can only work when you program it to! If you have any questions about operating your home or business security system, our Delaware alarm company will be glad to answer them.