BURGLARY, at common law, the offence of breaking and entering the dwelling-house of another in the night-time with intent to commit a felony. The offence and its punishment are regulated in England by the Larceny Act 1916. That statute by s. 25 provides that : "Every person who in the night (I) breaks and enters the dwelling-house of another with intent to commit any felony therein; or (2) breaks out of the dwelling-house of another, having (a) entered the said dwelling-house with intent to commit any felony therein ; or (b) committed any felony in the said dwelling-house" is guilty of the felony called burglary and is liable to penal servitude for life. The four important points to be considered in connection with the offence of burglary are (I) the time, (2) the place, (3) the manner and (4) the intent. The time is the essence of the offence; night is defined by the act of 1916 to mean "the interval between nine o'clock in the evening and six o'clock in the morning of the next succeeding day." The place must be a dwelling-house or private residence, i.e., the permanent building in which the occupier dwells. No building, although within the same curtilage as the dwelling-house and occupied therewith, is part of the dwelling-house for the purposes of burglary, unless there is a communication between such build ing and dwelling-house either immediate or by means of a covered and enclosed passage leading from the one to the other (s. 46 of the Act of 1916).
As to the manner, there must be both a breaking and an entry. Both must be at night, but not necessarily on the same night, pro vided that in the breaking and in the entry there is an intent to commit a felony. The breaking may be either an actual breaking of any external part of a building; or opening or lifting any closed door, window, shutter or lock; or entry by means of a threat, artifice or collusion with persons inside.
Breaking and entry must be with the intent to commit a felony, otherwise it is only trespass. The felony need not be a larceny; it may be either murder or rape.
Housebreaking in English law is to be distinguished from bur glary, in that it is not essential that it should be committed at night, nor in a dwelling-house, save in the case of mere entry with intent to commit a felony. The offence and the punishment are now regulated by ss. 26 & 27 of the Larceny Act, 1916, and a dis tinction is made between housebreaking and committing felony, and housebreaking with intent to commit felony. Under s. 26: "Every person who (I) breaks and enters any dwelling-house, or any building within the curtilage thereof and occupied therewith, or any schoolhouse, shop, warehouse, counting-house, office, store, garage, pavilion, factory, or workshop, or any building belonging to His Majesty, or to any government department or to any municipal or other public authority, and commits any felony there in; or (2) breaks out of the same, having committed any felony therein" is guilty of felony and liable to penal servitude not ex ceeding 14 years. By s. 27: "Every person who, with intent to commit any felony therein, (I) enters any dwelling-house in the night; or (2) breaks and enters any dwelling-house, place of divine worship, or any building within the curtilage, or any school-house" or any of the other premises mentioned in s. 26 is guilty of felony and liable to penal servitude not exceeding seven years. Every burglary involves housebreaking, but every housebreaking does not amount to burglary.