In the colonial period breaking and entering was considered to be one of the worst crimes to commit besides murder. Now they considered breaking and entering a violation of two strong American principles at the same time and they were protection of property and the right to privacy. There was also the fact that it brought out the potential for violence, because confronting a burglar could cause bodily harm or death to the victim. Furthermore, burglary was considered to be a felony and was to be “severely punished.” So those who committed the crime received these punishments because they not only violated the trust of the community but brought fear to everyone. It also placed the home owner in severe danger. Therefore, he could receive a sentence of being whipped or even death.
Now when this crime was committed depending upon how many times the burglar had committed this crime for what punishment they would receive. First time offenders would receive the letter “B” branded on their forehead. The second time offenders would receive a more severe punishment such as being severely…show more content… Now if Jim was to commit this crime in the state of South Carolina depending upon the degree of the crime for what type of punishment he would receive. For example for the possession of burglary he could get up to five years in the state prison and if he was to commit burglary in the third degree he could receive five years. Now if just was to do a much serious crime such as burglary in the second degree he could receive a sentence of up to fifteen years in a state prison and if he commit first degree burglary he could receive fifteen years to life in prison. Although, all of these sentences with the exception of a life sentence offer the possibility of parole for him but if he gets life in prison there is no possibility of parole unless the judge allows it when sentencing