Property Crime Lawyer

Property Crime Lawyer in NYC

A property crime in New York is any offense that involves taking, damaging, or unlawfully entering someone else’s property, from shoplifting and graffiti to grand larceny and criminal mischief. Most are graded by the dollar value involved, which decides whether the charge is a misdemeanor or a felony. A NYC property crime lawyer works to reduce the charge, protect your record, and keep you out of jail.

This page is the property crime section of our NY criminal defense practice, and it links to the specific charge pages below. Konta, Georges & Buza, P.C. defends property crime cases across Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and Staten Island. Our NYC property crime attorneys handle these matters from arraignment through dismissal, plea, or trial, and this page explains how New York classifies these charges and how the defense works.

What Is Considered a Property Crime in New York?

A property crime is an offense against property rather than a person. In New York, this covers theft and larceny, shoplifting, criminal possession of stolen property, criminal mischief and vandalism, graffiti, trespass, and burglary. What ties them together is that the alleged harm is to property, and the grading usually turns on the value of what was taken or damaged.

Unlike violent offenses, most property crimes do not require proof that anyone was hurt. The prosecution instead focuses on ownership, value, intent, and whether you had permission. Because a single incident can trigger several overlapping charges, such as a theft charged alongside criminal mischief and trespass, our New York property crime lawyers look at the whole set of counts, not just the top charge, to find where the case can be narrowed or broken apart.

What Are the Main Types of Property Crime Charges in NYC?

New York property crimes fall into a handful of major categories, each with its own statute and penalty structure. The most common charges our NYC property crime attorneys defend are theft and larceny, shoplifting, trespass, and criminal mischief or graffiti. Each has a dedicated page below with the statutes, penalties, and defenses that apply.

Theft charges run from petit larceny for property valued at $1,000 or less up to grand larceny for higher amounts. Our NYC theft crime lawyers handle the full range, and retail cases in particular are covered by our shoplifting defense lawyers. Trespass and criminal trespass, which involve entering or staying somewhere unlawfully, are handled by our criminal trespass lawyers. Property damage, tagging, and vandalism cases are defended by our NY graffiti lawyers under the criminal mischief statutes. When a trespass is charged as entering with intent to commit a crime inside, it becomes a burglary, and our NYC burglary defense lawyers take those felony cases.

How Does New York Decide If a Property Crime Is a Misdemeanor or a Felony?

For most New York property crimes, the dollar value of the property decides the level. Theft of $1,000 or less is petit larceny, a Class A misdemeanor, while higher values move up through the grand larceny degrees. The same value-driven structure applies to criminal possession of stolen property and to criminal mischief.

Under the larceny statutes, grand larceny in the fourth degree covers value over $1,000, third degree over $3,000, second degree over $50,000, and first degree over $1,000,000, rising from a Class E felony to a Class B felony. Criminal mischief follows a similar ladder, with damage over $250 becoming a felony. Because value sets the level, the amount the prosecution alleges is often the most contested fact in the case. Our New York property crime lawyers challenge inflated valuations, since moving a case below a threshold can turn a felony into a misdemeanor.

Will I Go to Jail for a Property Crime in NYC?

Many first-time misdemeanor property crimes in NYC resolve without jail, often through a dismissal, a reduction, community service, or a conditional discharge. Felony property crimes carry real prison exposure, but even those frequently resolve below the top charge with the right defense. Your record and the value alleged drive the risk more than the label on the charge.

A Class A misdemeanor such as petit larceny carries up to 364 days, but a first offense rarely results in that. Felony larceny and criminal mischief carry potential state prison time that grows with the degree. The practical goal in most property cases is a disposition that avoids both jail and a permanent conviction. Our NYC property crime attorneys use the early court dates to argue bail properly and to start building toward a reduction or dismissal.

Can a Property Crime Charge Be Dismissed or Reduced?

Yes. Property crime charges are often reduced or dismissed through value disputes, an adjournment in contemplation of dismissal, restitution agreements, suppression motions, or challenges to a defective complaint. Retail and first-offense cases in particular have well-worn paths to a non-criminal outcome.

An adjournment in contemplation of dismissal, or ACD under CPL 170.55, holds the case open and dismisses it if there is no new arrest. Paying restitution can support a reduction or a favorable plea. If the accusatory instrument fails to allege every element, including ownership and value, our New York property crime lawyers move to dismiss it as facially insufficient. If evidence came from an unlawful stop or search, a suppression motion under CPL 710 can remove the proof the case depends on.

What Are Common Defenses to Property Crime Charges?

Strong property crime defenses attack ownership, value, intent, and identification. A genuine claim of right to the property, a lack of intent to steal or damage, an inflated valuation, permission to be present, or mistaken identity from unclear video can each defeat or shrink a charge.

New York recognizes a claim-of-right defense when someone took property they honestly believed was theirs. Many theft and mischief cases also turn on intent, which the prosecution must prove and which is often missing in accidents, misunderstandings, and disputes over shared property. Because so many property cases rely on surveillance or body-worn camera footage, our NYC property crime attorneys scrutinize that footage closely, since blurry or partial video frequently fails to prove who did what.

Do Property Crimes Stay on My Record, and Can They Be Sealed?

A property crime conviction is a crime and appears on your record and on background checks. A non-criminal violation or an ACD does not create a criminal record. Many older misdemeanor and eligible felony property convictions can be sealed under New York’s sealing law or the Clean Slate Act after a waiting period.

The record consequences are often the real stakes, because a theft or mischief conviction can surface in employment, housing, and licensing screenings for years, and theft offenses in particular raise honesty concerns with employers. Resolving the current case to a violation, an ACD, or a dismissal keeps a crime off your history. For past cases, discretionary sealing under CPL 160.59 and automatic sealing under the Clean Slate Act can remove eligible convictions from public view.

What If I Am Not a U.S. Citizen and Was Charged With a Property Crime?

Property crimes carry serious immigration risk because many theft-related offenses are treated as crimes involving moral turpitude, which can affect green cards, visas, naturalization, and reentry. A non-citizen facing any property charge should avoid pleading guilty until the immigration consequences are fully analyzed.

Theft and fraud-type offenses draw particular immigration scrutiny, and even a misdemeanor plea entered to resolve a case quickly can cause lasting harm. Under the Supreme Court’s Padilla decision, defense counsel must advise non-citizen clients of those consequences. Our New York property crime lawyers structure dispositions to protect immigration status, often steering toward a violation or a dismissal rather than a conviction that triggers immigration exposure.

What Should I Do After a Property Crime Arrest in NYC?

After a property crime arrest, stay silent, do not consent to searches, and do not try to explain or apologize to police or the property owner. Keep any receipts, messages, or records that show ownership or permission, and contact a lawyer before your first court date so the case starts on the right footing.

The hours after an arrest often shape the whole case. Statements you make to smooth things over, or an apology offered to a store or a neighbor, can later be treated as admissions of intent or value. If you were given a desk appearance ticket instead of being held, treat the court date seriously, because missing it creates a warrant. Preserve anything that supports your side, including proof of purchase, a lease, texts showing you had permission, or evidence that the property was worth less than alleged. Our NYC property crime attorneys use that material early to push for a reduction or a dismissal before the case hardens.

Should I Talk to the Police or a Store’s Loss Prevention Team?

No. Do not give a statement, sign anything, or answer questions from police or a store’s loss prevention staff without a lawyer. In property crime cases, the central issues are intent and value, and casual admissions are exactly what the prosecution needs to prove them.

Store loss prevention officers routinely ask people to sign statements or admissions after a shoplifting stop, and those documents are handed to prosecutors. Police questioning works the same way, converting an offhand explanation into evidence of a guilty state of mind. You have the right to remain silent and the right to counsel, and using them is not evidence of guilt. Politely decline to answer, ask for a lawyer, and let our New York property crime lawyers deal with the prosecution and any civil demand letters that follow.

How Do Our NYC Property Crime Attorneys Handle These Cases?

Our approach is staged: intervene early, investigate ownership and value, attack the charging instrument, negotiate from strength, and try the case if the offer is not fair. Each stage is aimed at moving the charge below a felony threshold or toward a dismissal.

Early intervention means getting into the case before or at arraignment so nothing you say makes it worse. Investigation means examining receipts, appraisals, ownership records, and surveillance footage, and testing the value the prosecution alleges. Motion practice means challenging a facially insufficient complaint under CPL 100.40 and moving to suppress unlawfully obtained evidence under CPL 710. Negotiation means using those weaknesses to secure an ACD, a reduction, or a dismissal. When the prosecution will not offer a fair resolution, our NYC property crime lawyers are trial lawyers who take the case to a judge or jury.

Why Choose Konta, Georges & Buza for a Property Crime Case?

Konta, Georges & Buza, P.C. is a New York criminal defense firm that handles its cases in house, from arraignment through trial and appeal. Property crime matters are defended by the same partners who try felonies, so a misdemeanor gets senior attention rather than a hand-off.

The firm’s partners, Adam B. Konta, Robert W. Georges, and John P. Buza, defend the full range of New York state and federal charges, and that trial experience shapes how every property case is negotiated. Prosecutors treat a firm ready to litigate differently than one looking for a quick plea, and our NYC property crime attorneys use that leverage to push for the outcome that keeps a crime off your record.

Talk to a NYC Property Crime Lawyer Today

A property crime charge is easier to fix at the start than after a plea. Before your court date, talk to Konta, Georges & Buza, P.C. to get our defense team started on protecting your record.