Injury to Real and Personal Property in North Carolina

North Carolina recognizes the crimes of injury to real property and injury to personal property. Under North Carolina law, you can face charges for willfully and wantonly damaging real property. North Carolina laws strongly protect the property rights of the property owner. Movies often portray the destruction of property as comical or silly. However, in real life, the willful destruction of someone else’s property can be a crime. If you destroy or deface someone else’s property, you could face serious charges for property damage.

Have you faced an arrest for the destruction of personal property or real property in Charlotte? If so, time is of the essence. The more time you have to create a compelling legal defense, the better. When you are facing serious criminal charges, you need serious criminal defense lawyers. At Arnold & Smith, PLLC, we have decades of experience fighting for our clients throughout the criminal law process. Contact our law firm today to schedule your free case evaluation and learn how we can fight for your rights.

What is an injury to real property ? Real property is considered land and the fixtures attached to the land. Real property includes commercial buildings, garages, walls, fences, gates, outhouses, barns, apartment buildings, condos, and, homes. You do not need to destroy the property or even cause severe damage to face charges. Simply “egging” a house by throwing eggs or “TP-ing” a house by throwing toilet paper around it or its trees can warrant real property charges.

In many cases, people who thought that they were only engaging in a funny prank later realize that they are facing criminal charges. It is important to note that the damage does not need to be completely permanent or severe in order to warrant prosecution. In addition to pranks, people who try to set fire to someone’s property may face real property damage charges as well as arson charges.

If you are facing charges for a prank or for more serious damage, it is essential that you speak with a lawyer as soon as possible. At Arnold & Smith, PLLC, we are experienced at fighting property crime charges. We can use our skills to fight on your behalf.

If you have been charged with personal property damage, you are facing a misdemeanor conviction. The law states that if you wantonly and willfully injure another person’s personal property, you can be charged with a class 2 misdemeanor. Personal property is different than real property.

If you damage someone else’s personal property, and the property is valued at over $200, you face class 1 misdemeanor charges. The level of misdemeanor charge depends on the value of the personal property that became damaged. When the damaged property is valued at less than $200, prosecutors will bring class 1 misdemeanor charges.

Personal property includes any property that is not real property. Personal property includes all of the following:

• Someone else’s vehicle
• Someone else’s artwork
• Someone else’s jewelry
• Someone else’s phone, tablet, or other electronic devices
• Someone else’s laptop

• Graffiti vandalism
• Injury to trees, crops, land of another
• Disorderly conduct in and injuries to public buildings and facilities
• Setting fire to brushlands and grass
• Negligently or willfully setting fire to fields and woods
• Injuring churches, houses, fences, and walls
• Injuring bridges
• Removing, altering, or defacing landmarks
• Defacing or desecrating grave sites
• Cutting, mutilating, defacing, or otherwise injuring property to obtain nonferrous metals

Injury to property means that you harmed someone else’s property. You may deface property in a way in which it cannot be repaired. In other cases, you may have destroyed property to the point where the property is unrecognizable. In both of these scenarios, you may face charges. If you damage property in a way that is easily fixable without an expensive repair cost, prosecutors are less likely to bring charges. One way of challenging property damage charges is to contend that the damage does not rise to the level of an “injury.”

Conviction of a misdemeanor can negatively affect your life for a significant period of time. Living with a criminal record can make even simple actions like taking out a loan difficult. Contact the skilled lawyers at Arnold & Smith, PLLC today to schedule your free case evaluation. Call our lawyers at (704) 370-2828 to evaluate your options or fill out our contact form. Now taking cases throughout North Carolina with offices in Uptown Charlotte, Mooresville and Monroe.