Idaho Malicious Injury To Property
Malicious Injury To Property
Every person who maliciously injures or destroys any real or personal property not his own, or any jointly owned property without permission of the joint owner, or any property belonging to the community of the person's marriage, is guilty of an injury to property crime. misdemeanor and maybe punished by imprisonment in the county jail for up to one (1) year, a fine of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000), or both.
Misdemeanor Malicious Injury To Property
A person is guilty of a misdemeanor malicious injury to property if the damage does not exceed $1000 and is unrelated to any common scheme or plan. Misdemeanor Injury to Property may be punished by imprisonment in the county jail for up to one (1) year, a fine of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000), or both.
Felony Malicious Injury To Property
A person is guilty of a felony malicious injury to property, punishable by imprisonment in the state prison for not less than one (1) year nor more than five (5) years, a fine of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000), or both, if:
- The damages caused by the violation exceed one thousand dollars ($1,000) in value; or
2. Any series of individual violations are part of a common scheme or plan and are aggregated in one (1) count, and the damages from such violations when considered together exceed one thousand dollars ($1,000) in value.
Determining the Value of Damages
When it comes to malicious injury to property, the value of damages plays a crucial role in deciding whether the offense is considered a misdemeanor or rises to the level of a felony. The law looks at the total value of property that was damaged or destroyed. If the amount exceeds $1,000, the offense may be charged as a felony. This is true whether it's a single incident or a series of related acts that, when added up, cross the $1,000 threshold.
For example, if someone damages several items over a period of time as part of a common plan, authorities will add up all those incidents together. If the collective value reaches more than $1,000, the charge could bump up from misdemeanor to felony, even if each individual act alone would have been a lower amount. This ensures that property crimes carried out with a common scheme aren't minimized simply because the damages occurred across multiple events.
Contact Schofield and Young to Fight Your Idaho Injury to Property Case
Our attorneys are experienced in handling these types of cases. We will defend your rights from beginning to end.
