Committee adopts burglary inference in committee substitute for Senate Bill 864

A Senate committee voted to adopt an amended committee substitute for Senate Bill 864 and report it to the full Senate with a recommendation that it pass. Counsel explained the substitute adds an inference to the burglary statute that a person who "enters or remains unlawfully in a dwelling house" may be inferred to have acted with intent to commit a crime against a person or property therein; subsection e clarifies how indictments for burglary are to be framed.

Counsel said the state would still be required to prove intent but that "under certain circumstances, this inference would allow the jury to conclude that the intent was present." The language was modeled, counsel said, on a Washington State statute but was pared down to avoid imposing a constitutional requirement that a defendant must rebut the inference. The committee discussed practical effects: whether the language could sweep in people who enter dilapidated or abandoned buildings, how the dwelling‑house definition applies, and whether the change shifts burdens at the indictment stage.

Committee members pressed counsel for detail. Counsel read the dwelling‑house definition aloud, saying it "includes, but is not limited to, mobile home, house trailer, module, or home factory built home, self propelled motor home, used as a dwelling regularly or only from time to time, or any other non motorized vehicle primarily designed for human habitation and occupancy." Senator from Marion raised concerns that the change could lead to felony charges where trespass statutes historically handled lesser conduct and said she would vote no, citing risks to indictment sufficiency and likely appellate challenges. The junior senator from the eighth successfully moved to strike "outhouse" from the section heading and replace it with "outbuilding," and the committee adopted an amendment to insert the words "of another" after "dwelling house."

Vice Chair moved that the committee substitute as amended be reported to the full Senate with a recommendation that it pass; the motion was adopted by voice vote and the chair declared it agreed to. The transcript does not include a roll‑call tally. The committee record does not include detailed fiscal or enforcement estimates or a timeline for implementation; senators noted existing trespass law and differentiated between unoccupied dilapidated structures and occupied dwellings in applying burglary law.