Burglary, Criminal Trespass and Robbery in Texas: What It Means for You

Legally reviewed by Chris Jeansonne, Criminal Defense Attorney, Dunham & Jones, Attorneys at Law, P.C. · Last reviewed: October 21, 2026

Burglary, criminal trespass, and robbery may sound like different versions of the same crime. Under Texas law, however, they are separate offenses with very different elements and potentially very different punishments.

A person can commit criminal trespass without stealing anything. A person can commit burglary without breaking a window, picking a lock, or successfully stealing anything. A person can commit robbery without entering anyone’s property at all. In some situations, what begins as one offense can also develop into a much more serious charge within seconds.

The distinction often comes down to several questions: Did you have permission to be there? What kind of property did you enter? What did you intend to do? Did you commit or attempt another crime after entering? Was property being stolen? Was another person injured, threatened, or placed in fear?

Those details matter because the difference between criminal trespass, burglary, robbery, and aggravated robbery can be the difference between a misdemeanor allegation and a felony carrying decades in prison.

What Is the Difference Between Trespass, Burglary, and Robbery in Texas?

The simplest way to understand these offenses is to look at what each one primarily concerns.

Criminal trespass generally involves entering or remaining on another person’s property without effective consent after receiving notice that entry was forbidden or notice to leave.

Burglary generally involves entering or remaining concealed in a building or habitation without effective consent with certain criminal intentions, or entering and committing or attempting a felony, theft, or assault.

Robbery involves theft or attempted theft combined with bodily injury, threats, or placing another person in fear of imminent bodily injury or death.

These descriptions are useful shorthand, but Texas law contains several different ways each offense may be established. Small differences in the facts can substantially change the charge.

Arrested or accused of burglary, criminal trespass or robbery in Texas? Call Dunham & Jones 24/7 at 800-499-8455 for a free consultation.

What Is Criminal Trespass in Texas?

Under Texas Penal Code Section 30.05, criminal trespass generally occurs when a person enters or remains on or in another person’s property without effective consent and the person had notice that entry was forbidden or received notice to leave but failed to do so.

Criminal trespass does not require an intent to steal, assault anyone, or commit another crime.

Someone might face a criminal trespass allegation after entering fenced private property despite adequate notice, going into a restricted area where they know they are not permitted, or refusing to leave a home or business after being told to go.

A person can also initially have permission to be somewhere and later lose that permission.

For example, suppose someone is invited into a former partner’s home. An argument begins, and the homeowner tells the visitor to leave. The visitor refuses. The fact that the visitor originally entered with permission does not necessarily give that person an unlimited right to remain.

Texas law recognizes multiple ways a person can receive notice that entry is forbidden, depending on the property and circumstances. Notice can include oral or written communication, qualifying signs, certain fencing or enclosures, and other methods specifically recognized by the statute.

What Are the Penalties for Criminal Trespass in Texas?

The punishment for criminal trespass depends on the circumstances and location involved.

Criminal trespass is commonly a Class B misdemeanor, punishable by up to 180 days in county jail and a fine of up to $2,000. Some circumstances can make trespass a Class C misdemeanor, while others can elevate it to a Class A misdemeanor. For example, criminal trespass committed in a habitation is a Class A misdemeanor.

A Class A misdemeanor can carry up to one year in county jail and a fine of up to $4,000.

This is why assuming that trespassing is “just a ticket” can be a serious mistake.

What Is Burglary in Texas?

Texas burglary law is considerably broader than the popular idea of “breaking and entering.”

Under Texas Penal Code Section 30.02, a person may commit burglary if, without the owner’s effective consent, the person enters a habitation or a building or portion of a building that is not then open to the public with intent to commit a felony, theft, or assault.

Burglary can also occur when someone remains concealed in a building or habitation with intent to commit a felony, theft, or assault.

Another part of the statute applies when someone enters a building or habitation and commits or attempts to commit a felony, theft, or assault.

These distinctions are important because prosecutors do not always have to prove the stereotypical scenario of someone forming a plan to steal, smashing a window, climbing inside, taking property, and escaping.

Does Burglary Require Breaking Into a Building?

No.

Texas burglary law does not require a person to break a window, force open a door, pick a lock, or damage property.

An unlocked door is not necessarily permission to enter. Neither is an open window or open garage.

Texas law also defines entry broadly for purposes of burglary. Under Section 30.02(b), entry can occur through the intrusion of any part of the body or any physical object connected with the body. By contrast, for criminal trespass, Section 30.05 defines entry as intrusion of the entire body.

Suppose someone reaches through an open window intending to take a laptop sitting nearby. The person may not be able to successfully defend a burglary allegation merely by arguing that the rest of their body never entered the house.

Likewise, reaching through an opening to unlock a door from the inside can raise burglary issues even before someone physically walks through the doorway.

Can You Be Charged With Burglary If You Did Not Steal Anything?

Yes.

One of the most common misconceptions about burglary is that something must actually be stolen.

Texas burglary law does not apply only to theft. The statute also addresses certain entries involving an intended felony or assault.

For example, suppose someone enters an ex-partner’s home without effective consent intending to assault the ex’s new partner. Nothing is stolen. That does not automatically prevent a burglary charge.

Likewise, suppose someone enters a closed business intending to steal computers, hears an alarm before taking anything, and immediately runs away. Leaving empty-handed does not necessarily mean a burglary did not occur.

Intent can therefore become one of the most important disputed issues in a burglary case.

Can You Commit Burglary After Entering a Store Legally?

Potentially, depending on what happened.

A store that is open to the public generally invites customers to enter its public areas. Simply walking into an open store while contemplating shoplifting does not automatically create the same burglary analysis as entering a closed building without consent.

But permission to enter one part of a business does not necessarily provide permission to enter every part of it.

An employee-only stockroom, locked office, secured storage area, or other nonpublic portion of a building can present a different legal question.

Texas law also specifically addresses remaining concealed inside a building or habitation with intent to commit a felony, theft, or assault.

Imagine someone enters a store normally shortly before closing, hides in a restroom or stockroom until the employees leave, and then emerges intending to steal merchandise.

“I walked through the front door while the store was open” does not necessarily resolve the burglary allegation.

Is an Unlocked Door Permission to Enter?

No.

The absence of a lock does not automatically create effective consent.

A person generally cannot walk through a stranger’s unlocked front door and then argue that the homeowner implicitly invited the public inside by failing to lock it.

The same principle can become important with garages, offices, sheds, businesses, and other structures. Whether someone had effective consent and whether the location qualifies as a building or habitation can be critical questions in a burglary case.

What Counts as a Habitation in Texas?

Burglary of a habitation is treated much more seriously than burglary of many other buildings, so the legal definition matters.

Texas Penal Code Section 30.01 defines a habitation as a structure or vehicle adapted for the overnight accommodation of people. The definition also includes separately secured or occupied portions and certain structures appurtenant to or connected with the structure or vehicle.

That means a habitation is not necessarily limited to a traditional single-family house. Depending on the circumstances, other structures or vehicles adapted for people to stay overnight may qualify.

The distinction can have major sentencing consequences.

Burglary of a building other than a habitation is generally a state jail felony, although statutory circumstances can change the classification. For example, it is a third-degree felony when a person enters or remains concealed in a pharmacy, clinic, hospital or similar commercial building intending to steal a controlled substance. A state jail felony generally carries 180 days to two years in a state jail and a fine of up to $10,000.

Burglary of a habitation is generally a second-degree felony, punishable by two to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.

Burglary of a habitation becomes a first-degree felony when any party to the offense entered the habitation intending to commit a felony other than felony theft, or committed or attempted to commit a felony other than felony theft. A first-degree felony can carry five to 99 years or life in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.

Is Entering Someone’s Yard Burglary?

Not necessarily.

This is an important distinction between criminal trespass and burglary.

Suppose someone climbs over a clearly marked fence and enters a private backyard without permission. That conduct may support a criminal trespass allegation.

But simply entering someone’s land is not automatically burglary under Texas Penal Code Section 30.02. Burglary involves a building or habitation and the additional elements required by the statute.

If the person then enters the house, attached garage, or another qualifying structure, the legal analysis may change.

Likewise, stealing an item sitting in someone’s yard may potentially involve theft and trespass without necessarily constituting burglary of the house.

Garages, sheds, detached structures, porches, and similar areas can produce fact-specific questions about exactly what was entered and how Texas law classifies that location.

Can Criminal Trespass Turn Into Burglary?

The facts that initially look like criminal trespass can develop into a burglary allegation.

Suppose someone unlawfully enters property simply to look around. At that point, there may be no evidence that the person entered intending to steal or commit another qualifying offense.

But while there, the person enters a building and decides to steal expensive tools.

Texas burglary law includes circumstances in which a person enters a building or habitation and then commits or attempts to commit a felony, theft, or assault.

That means the person’s intent at the precise moment they first stepped onto the surrounding property is not necessarily the end of the analysis.

Can You Burglarize a House Where You Used to Live?

This can become considerably more complicated than people expect.

Suppose you recently moved out of a house or apartment but still have a key. Your clothes are still inside. You paid part of the current month’s rent. Perhaps your name is still on the lease, or perhaps it never was. Maybe your spouse changed the locks, a former partner told you not to return, or a court order gave someone else possession of the residence.

“I used to live there” does not by itself answer whether you had effective consent to enter at the time of the alleged offense.

Ownership, possessory rights, lease arrangements, court orders, relationships between the parties, communications withdrawing permission, and the particular facts surrounding entry can all matter.

Anyone facing a burglary or trespass accusation involving a current or former shared residence should avoid assuming that having a key automatically settles the issue.

What Is Robbery in Texas?

Robbery is fundamentally different from burglary because robbery focuses on theft combined with injury, threats, or fear involving another person.

Under Texas Penal Code Section 29.02, a person commits robbery if, in the course of committing theft and with intent to obtain or maintain control of property, the person intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly causes bodily injury to another person, or intentionally or knowingly threatens or places another person in fear of imminent bodily injury or death.

Robbery is a second-degree felony in Texas.

A conviction can result in two to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.

Do You Need a Gun to Commit Robbery?

No.

A weapon is not required for ordinary robbery.

Suppose someone grabs a woman’s purse. She holds onto it, and the person shoves her to the pavement before running away with it.

That can potentially support a robbery charge.

A person can also potentially commit robbery without physically touching the victim. Threatening someone or intentionally or knowingly placing that person in fear of imminent bodily injury or death can satisfy the assaultive component of robbery when the other statutory elements are present.

Someone who demands a wallet while threatening to beat the victim can therefore potentially face robbery charges even without displaying a weapon.

Can Shoplifting Turn Into Robbery?

Yes, and this is one of the easiest ways to understand how quickly the severity of a criminal allegation can change.

Suppose someone conceals merchandise and walks out of a store without paying.

A loss prevention employee approaches in the parking lot. The person shoves the employee to the ground and runs away with the merchandise.

What began as an alleged theft may now support a robbery allegation.

Texas Penal Code Section 29.01 defines conduct “in the course of committing theft” broadly enough to include conduct during an attempt to commit theft, during the theft itself, and in immediate flight after the attempt or commission.

That means crossing the store’s exit does not necessarily end the relevant period.

Dropping the merchandise before a confrontation can make the facts more complicated, but it does not automatically eliminate a possible robbery charge. Investigators and prosecutors may examine the timing, whether the person was still in immediate flight from an attempted or completed theft, the person’s actions and intent, and exactly when the injury or threat occurred.

Someone accused of shoplifting can therefore make an already serious situation dramatically worse by fighting, shoving, striking, or threatening employees while trying to escape.

Can You Be Charged With Robbery If You Did Not Get Any Money?

Yes.

Texas’s definition of “in the course of committing theft” includes an attempt to commit theft.

Imagine someone approaches another person and says, “Give me your wallet or I’ll stab you.” The intended victim screams, other people turn around, and the person making the threat runs away without taking anything.

The fact that no property was successfully obtained does not automatically prevent a robbery prosecution.

What Is Aggravated Robbery in Texas?

Under Texas Penal Code Section 29.03, robbery can become aggravated robbery when additional circumstances are present.

Aggravated robbery can involve causing serious bodily injury, using or exhibiting a deadly weapon, or causing bodily injury to or threatening or placing certain protected victims in fear of imminent bodily injury or death. The statute specifically includes victims who are 65 years of age or older and certain disabled persons.

Aggravated robbery is a first-degree felony.

A conviction can mean five to 99 years or life in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.

What If Someone Claims to Have a Gun but Does Not Actually Have One?

Threatening someone with a gun that does not exist does not make the underlying situation harmless.

A statement such as “Give me your wallet or I’ll shoot you” may potentially satisfy the fear or threat component of robbery even if the person never possessed a firearm.

Whether the case can be elevated to aggravated robbery based on the use or exhibition of a deadly weapon is a separate question requiring examination of what was actually possessed, used, exhibited, or perceived and what prosecutors can prove.

Cases involving a hand concealed inside a sweatshirt, fake gun, BB gun, unloaded firearm, knife, baseball bat, vehicle, or another alleged weapon can involve complicated questions about whether the object qualifies as a deadly weapon and how it was used or exhibited.

Those details can have enormous consequences when the difference is between a second-degree and first-degree felony.

Can Someone Be Charged With Both Burglary and Robbery?

Potentially.

Imagine someone unlawfully enters an empty house intending to steal jewelry.

The homeowner unexpectedly comes home while the person is still inside.

The intruder takes the jewelry and attempts to escape. When the homeowner blocks the doorway, the intruder knocks the homeowner down, threatens them, or produces a weapon.

The original unlawful entry may support a burglary allegation. The later conduct involving theft, injury, threats, or fear may also support a robbery or aggravated robbery allegation.

One criminal episode can therefore result in multiple serious charges.

Why Intent Matters So Much

Two people can perform nearly identical physical acts and face very different allegations because of what prosecutors believe each person intended.

Consider someone climbing through a window.

If the person reasonably believed they had permission to enter, there may be a dispute over effective consent.

If the person knew they lacked permission but entered without intending another crime, criminal trespass or another offense may be the relevant issue depending on the circumstances.

If the person entered intending to steal, commit an assault, or commit a felony, prosecutors may pursue burglary.

The government still has to prove the required elements beyond a reasonable doubt. Intent is often established through circumstantial evidence rather than a confession about what someone was thinking.

Texts, surveillance footage, statements, tools or property allegedly found in someone’s possession, relationships between the people involved, prior communications, conduct before and after entry, and other evidence may all become important.

What the Police Call It at the Scene Is Not Necessarily the Final Charge

Being arrested for burglary does not mean prosecutors can necessarily prove burglary.

Likewise, an allegation initially described as robbery may ultimately involve a dispute over whether the evidence proves robbery, aggravated robbery, theft, assault, or another offense.

The exact charge can depend on evidence concerning effective consent, notice, intent, ownership, entry, whether a location legally qualifies as a building or habitation, whether a theft was attempted or committed, whether someone was injured or threatened, and whether prosecutors can prove the alleged use of a deadly weapon.

These distinctions matter because changing the legal classification of an offense can dramatically change someone’s possible punishment.

What Could a Burglary, Trespass, or Robbery Case Cost Me?

The consequences can extend far beyond a fine.

Depending on the charge, a person may face county jail, state jail, years or even decades in prison, court costs, possible restitution, probation or supervision restrictions, employment problems, housing difficulties, professional licensing consequences, and a criminal record that can continue affecting the person’s life long after the case ends.

Felony allegations can be particularly damaging.

The financial cost of defending a criminal case also varies considerably based on the charge, county, complexity of the evidence, number of court appearances, investigation required, negotiations, motions, experts, and whether the case proceeds to trial.

Some criminal defense firms offer payment plans. A person comparing attorneys should ask what services are included in the quoted fee and what additional expenses could arise.

Waiting to hire counsel simply because the person hopes the charge will remain “just trespassing” can be risky when the underlying facts could support a more serious allegation.

What Should I Look for in a Texas Criminal Defense Attorney?

Burglary, robbery, and criminal trespass cases can turn on distinctions that are easy to overlook.

An experienced Texas criminal defense attorney should carefully examine how the person allegedly entered the property, whether permission existed, whether permission had actually been withdrawn, what notice was provided, what the accused allegedly intended, whether the property qualifies as a building or habitation, what happened during any alleged theft, and whether evidence actually supports claims of injury, threats, fear, or a deadly weapon.

Resources can also matter. Serious felony cases may require investigators, surveillance footage, witnesses, digital evidence, records, expert analysis, and attorneys capable of responding quickly to developments in the case.

For that reason, someone facing a serious burglary or robbery allegation may benefit from hiring an experienced criminal defense attorney. It can also help to ask whether the firm has the investigators, support staff and other resources to investigate the case thoroughly and begin protecting the client’s interests immediately.

Depending on the evidence and circumstances, an experienced criminal defense lawyer may be able to challenge the prosecution’s evidence, seek dismissal of the charge, negotiate a reduction to a less serious offense, or pursue another favorable resolution.

Charged With Burglary, Criminal Trespass, or Robbery in Texas?

The difference between these charges is not simply whether someone “broke in” or “stole something.”

A person who enters somewhere without permission may be dealing with criminal trespass. Evidence of an intended or completed felony, theft, or assault involving a building or habitation can create a burglary case. Theft combined with injury, threats, or fear can become robbery. Add serious bodily injury, a deadly weapon, or certain vulnerable victims, and the allegation can become aggravated robbery.

Those differences can mean the difference between misdemeanor exposure and the possibility of decades or even life in prison.

If you have been arrested or accused of burglary, criminal trespass, robbery, or aggravated robbery in Texas, speak with an experienced criminal defense attorney immediately. Dunham & Jones represents people accused of crimes throughout Texas and can evaluate the specific facts, explain the charges you are actually facing, and begin identifying possible defenses.

Call Dunham & Jones 24/7 at 800-499-8455 for a free consultation.

Frequently Asked Questions

This article provides general information and is not legal advice. Every case depends on its particular facts, charges, criminal history, court orders, and applicable law.