VA · jury_instructions
Va. Model Jury Instr. Crim. No. 49.400
Common Law Trespass to Realty
The defendant is charged with the crime of trespass. The Commonwealth must prove beyond a
reasonable doubt each of the following elements of that crime:
(1) That the defendant made an entry upon the [land; premises] of another; and
(2) That the entry was unauthorized; and
(3) That such unauthorized entry upon the [land; premises] of another was made under such
circumstances or in such a manner as to [constitute a breach of the peace; threaten a breach of the
peace].
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, [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 any one or
more of the 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
b4f43ff519737503f4e9c150e0474f831c346c0e43246e97ad79b395da8c3e47
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