VA · jury_instructions
Va. Model Jury Instr. Crim. No. 13.340
Computer Trespass—Installing Software on Five or More Computers
The defendant is charged with the crime of computer trespass. The Commonwealth must prove
beyond a reasonable doubt each of the following elements of that crime:
(1) That the defendant [installed; caused to be installed] on the computer of (name of computer’s
owner) computer software for the purpose of [taking control of the computer so that it can cause
damage to another computer; disabling or disrupting the ability of the computer to share or transmit
instructions or data to (other computers; any related computer equipment or devices, including but not
limited to printers, scanners, or fax machines)]; and
(2) That the defendant acted with malicious intent, or through intentionally deceptive means and
without authority; and
(3) That the defendant installed computer software on more than five computers of (name of
computer’s owner) with malicious intent.
If you find from the evidence that the Commonwealth has proved beyond a reasonable doubt
each of the above elements of the crime as charged, then you shall find the defendant guilty of the
felony of computer trespass, [but you shall not fix the punishment until your verdict has been
returned and further evidence has been heard by you].
If you find from the evidence that the Commonwealth has proved beyond a reasonable doubt
the first and second elements of the crime as charged but has failed to prove that the defendant
installed computer software on more than five computers with malicious intent, then you shall find
the defendant guilty of the misdemeanor of computer trespass [but you shall not fix the
punishment until your verdict has been returned and further evidence has been heard by you].
If you find that the Commonwealth has failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt either or
both of the first and second elements of the crime, then you shall find the defendant not guilty.
History
Virginia Model Jury Instructions – Criminal, Release 26, October 2025. The unannotated set, posted by the Supreme Court of Virginia at vacourts.gov; the book states that it is made available with the permission of the publisher, Matthew Bender & Company, Inc.
Provenance
- Source
- vacourts.gov
- Retrieved
- 2026-10-11
- Edition
- crim-2025-10-01
- Content hash
f7f9737f7c6c8fa14053e624e9a6dfa228999ada8c2ff4ee66cd6ab767f7fcf2
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