One state lawmaker says too many Missourians don’t feel safe in their own neighborhoods, and he believes tougher laws are the answer. A House panel has endorsed his proposal.
Representative Jim Murphy (R-St. Louis) says groups of individuals are routinely going through neighborhoods in his south St. Louis County district seeking opportunities to steal from homes and cars. This typically involves pulling door handles on multiple cars, looking for those that are unlocked.
“This is happening every night in St. Louis County, every single night. If you have a Ring doorbell you get these neighborhood alerts. Every single day I get, oh they’re checking doors in this neighborhood, they’re checking doors in that neighborhood. It’s just something now that is neighborhood terrorism,” Murphy told the House Committee on Crime Prevention and Public Safety.
Murphy told his colleagues that the people committing these acts feel no fear of punishment. He said the way Missouri statutes are written doesn’t cover these acts, or they fall under crimes which carry too little punishment. In incidents involving juveniles, the penalties are so lenient that when law enforcement does catch them in these acts, they are often simply let go.
He is sponsoring House Bill 1510, which would create the crime of “unlawfully gaining entry into a motor vehicle,” defined by the act of lifting the handles of, or otherwise attempting to open, the doors of successive vehicles in an attempt to gain entry. It would be a class E felony, punishable by up to four years in jail and a fine of up to $10,000.
It would also extend the crime of second-degree burglary to include unlawfully entering a vehicle, or any part of a vehicle, with the intent to commit a felony or theft. A person could commit such an offense with any part of the body, or with an object connected with the body. Burglary is a class D felony, which carries up to seven years in prison. If a person violating this provision has or steals a firearm, it would be a class C felony, punishable by three to ten years in prison.
“I voted for it in the past, I intend to vote for it now,” Representative Robert Sauls (D-Independence) told Murphy, but he questioned the design of the legislation. He and others on the committee asked whether these acts could fall under existing crimes without creating a new offense.
Murphy said it’s time to be more pointed.
“Doesn’t it send a message? If there’s a law out there that says you can’t tamper with, pull a door handle … now the word’s out,” Murphy said. “I think you really need it to be specific to make it known that this is the crime.”
At least one committee member, Representative Holly Jones (R-Eureka), said she is in full support.
The committee has voted to advance that bill. It will next be considered by another committee, and from there could be sent to the full House for consideration.