Bill > A343

This bill establishes the new first-degree crime of "home invasion," which occurs when someone unlawfully enters or remains in a residence with the intent to commit a serious crime, and either uses force or inflicts injury, threatens immediate bodily injury, commits or attempts to commit a first or second-degree crime, or is armed with a deadly weapon or explosive. The bill also amends existing law to upgrade burglary of a residence to a second-degree crime under certain circumstances, specifically if a resident or other person (not acting with the burglar) is present in the dwelling at the time of entry or surreptitious remaining, regardless of whether the burglar knew of their presence. Furthermore, this bill makes home invasion crimes subject to the No Early Release Act, meaning individuals convicted of this offense must serve at least 85% of their sentence before being eligible for parole, a provision that already applies to certain other serious crimes like robbery and murder.