People v. Lewis

OPINION OF THE COURT

Rosenblatt, J.

A key element of burglary, which elevates it from trespass, is the defendant’s intent to commit a crime inside a building. A defendant who knowingly enters or remains unlawfully in a dwelling is guilty of second-degree trespass, a class A misdemeanor (Penal Law § 140.15). That crime is elevated to second-degree burglary when the defendant intends to commit a crime inside the dwelling (Penal Law § 140.25 [2]).1

This appeal implicates whether the violation of an order of protection may serve as the intended crime underlying a burglary. We hold that the “intent…