What is the law on Criminal Trespass in Merriam Municipal Court?
The city of Merriam, like other cities, is a city that is governed by ordinances. Ordinances are just another way of saying laws. Each city in Kansas has the ability to author and pass laws that govern the conduct of people within their city limits. Authoring and passing laws can be a costly and cumbersome process. Many of the cities in an effort to minimize the costs and effort associated with authoring and passing each individual law will adopt a prewritten set of laws. There are several options for cities to adopt a basic set of laws, one of the common codes adopted by cities is the Uniform Code of Kansas Municipalities. Merriam has adopted this code with a few modifications. Below is the law on Criminal Trespass that the Merriam Municipal Court uses, when hearing cases of Criminal Trespass.
Sec. 6.7. Criminal Trespass
(a) Criminal trespass is entering or remaining upon or in any:
(1) Land, non-navigable body of water, structure, vehicle, aircraft or watercraft by a person who knows such person is not authorized or privileged to do so, and:
(A) Such person enters or remains therein in defiance of an order not to enter or to leave such premises or property personally communicated to such person by the owner thereof or other authorized person;
(B) Such premises or property are posted as provided in K.S.A. 32-1013, and amendments thereto, or in any other manner reasonably likely to come to the attention of intruders, or are locked or fenced or otherwise enclosed, or shut or secured against passage or entry; or
(C) Such person enters or remains therein in defiance of a restraining order issued by a court of competent jurisdiction and the restraining order has been personally served upon the person so restrained.
(2) Public or private land or structure in a manner that interferes with access to or from any health care facility by a person who knows such person is not authorized or privileged to do so and such person enters or remains thereon or therein in defiance of an order not to enter or to leave such land or structure personally communicated to such person by the owner of the health care facility or other authorized person.
(b) This section shall not apply to a land surveyor, licensed pursuant to article 70 of chapter 74 of the Kansas Statutes Annotated, and amendments 61 thereto, and such surveyor’s authorized agents and employees who enter upon lands, waters, and other premises in the making of a survey; or
Railroad Property as defined in K.S.A. 21- 5809, and amendments thereto, or nuclear generating facility as defined in K.S.A. 66-2302 and amendments thereto.
(c) Criminal trespass is a Class B violation.
Upon a conviction of a violation of subsection (a)(1)(C), a person shall be sentenced to not less than 48 consecutive hours of imprisonment which shall be served either before or as a condition of any grant of probation or suspension, reduction of sentence or parole.
(d) As used in this section:
Health care facility means any licensed medical care facility, certificated health maintenance organization, licensed mental health center or mental health clinic, licensed psychiatric hospital or other facility or office where services of a health care provider are provided directly to patients; and
Health care provider means any person:
(A) Licensed to practice a branch of the healing arts;
(B) Licensed to practice psychology;
(C) Licensed to practice professional or practical nursing;
(D) Licensed to practice dentistry;
(E) Licensed to practice optometry;
(F) Licensed to practice pharmacy;
(G) Registered to practice podiatry;
(H) Licensed as a social worker; or
(I) Registered to practice physical therapy (K.S.A. 21-5808)
Possible Punishment
*Class B Violations are punishable by up to 180 days in the Johnson County Jail, however, most Class B Violations are eligible for probation
You've been charged with Criminal Trespass in Merriam Municipal Court, now what do you do?
If you've found this page, you are already doing what you need to be doing, researching. Researching any new problem you have before you take action is usually the right place to start. Reading the law that law enforcement has alleged that you violated will generally give you a good base knowledge. Unfortunately, reading the law on criminal trespass will often lead to more questions than answers. It is rare that the law gives any real insight into factual scenarios, in other words, "If I did this... am I breaking the law?" is a question that the law rarely answers. After you have gathered what information you can by reading the law, you should read the commonly asked questions associated with a criminal trespass case. There is no need to start from scratch, reading the commonly asked questions allows you to build on the knowledge of others in a similar situation. Lastly, after you have gathered as much info as you can, it's time to meet with a lawyer. When meeting with your lawyer its a good time to ask questions about the law and your possible defenses. It is also a really good time to gather insight as to the Merriam Municipal Court and the personalities and people that are making the decisions on your case. Knowing the actors in the court and how they handle cases like yours is just as important as knowing the law they are adjudging you by. Look for a lawyer with extensive experience in Merriam Municipal Court.