Brooks Law Firm
Criminal trespass is the lowest level of criminal offense Tennessee has, and most people charged with it are genuinely surprised to be in court at all. A disagreement at an apartment complex, a former address, a business that asked someone to leave, a shortcut across a posted lot — these are the ordinary facts behind most of these cases. The charge is real and it does need answering, but it is also the one charge on this site where the honest headline is that the ceiling is low and the defenses are written into the statute itself.
Brooks Law Firm handles trespass cases in General Sessions at 201 Poplar and in the suburban municipal courts. Call (901) 324-5000, or call or text (901) 412-2973. Se habla español.
Criminal Trespass — T.C.A. § 39-14-405
Criminal trespass is entering or remaining on property without the owner’s consent. It is a Class C misdemeanor — up to 30 days and a fine up to $50. That is the least serious criminal classification in Tennessee.
Consent can be inferred. For commercial property open to the public, or where the owner has otherwise communicated an intent to open the property generally, the law does not treat ordinary entry as trespass. That is why a shopper asked to leave a store is usually only exposed from the moment of the request forward.
Three Defenses Written Into the Statute
Subsection (b) gives a person charged with criminal trespass three defenses, and they cover a great many real cases:
- The person reasonably believed they had consent to enter.
- The person’s conduct did not substantially interfere with the owner’s use of the property.
- The person left immediately upon request.
The notice exception — signs and purple paint
Those three defenses become unavailable where the owner has given notice. Notice means visible signage posted at the major entry points, or Tennessee’s purple paint marking — vertical purple lines at least eight inches long and at least one inch wide, placed between three and five feet off the ground. Where compliant notice exists, the question shifts from what you believed to whether you had actual permission.
There is a specific provision for housing and apartment complexes with compliant signage: consent is not inferred, and the statutory defenses do not apply unless the person had actual consent from the owner, occupational duties that permitted entry, or a contractual right to be there. In Shelby County this provision drives a large share of trespass cases, and whether the signage actually complied is a real and winnable question.
Aggravated Criminal Trespass — T.C.A. § 39-14-406
This is the charge that changes the conversation. Aggravated criminal trespass adds an element beyond unlawful presence — typically that the person knew they lacked consent and that their presence was intended to cause, or recklessly risked causing, fear for someone’s safety; or that they damaged a barrier to entry such as a gate, fence, or lock.
- Class B misdemeanor in the base case — up to 6 months, fine up to $500.
- Class A misdemeanor where it occurs in a habitation, a hospital building, on state property, or on the campus, property, or facilities of a public or private school. Railroad property and construction or utility sites also carry the Class A level.
- Class E felony where the property is the residence of a law enforcement officer, a member of the military, a judge, or a federal, state, or local official, and the person was targeted because of that status.
The word habitation is doing most of the work in the Class A tier. Whether a structure counts, and whether the fear element is supported by anything more than the complainant’s account, are the two places these cases are most often won down or resolved.
Trespass Is Not Burglary
Clients sometimes arrive expecting the worst because someone used the word burglary. Burglary requires entry with intent to commit a felony, theft, or assault. Trespass does not require any such intent — presence without consent is the offense. Where the State cannot prove that further intent, a burglary allegation can come down to trespass, and that is a difference of several felony classes. See our page on burglary and aggravated burglary for how that line is drawn.
Your Record
Neither criminal trespass nor aggravated criminal trespass appears on Tennessee’s diversion exclusion lists. Pretrial diversion under T.C.A. § 40-15-105 and judicial diversion under T.C.A. § 40-35-313 are both available to a qualified defendant, and both end in dismissal with eligibility for expungement. For a first offense with no disqualifying history, keeping this off a record permanently is an ordinary outcome rather than an optimistic one. See first-time offender options and expungement.
Frequently Asked Questions
How serious is a criminal trespass charge in Tennessee?
Criminal trespass is a Class C misdemeanor — up to 30 days and a $50 fine, the lowest criminal classification in Tennessee. It is still a criminal charge with a court date, but the realistic outcomes for a first offense are dismissal, diversion, or a small fine.
What is the difference between criminal trespass and aggravated criminal trespass?
Aggravated criminal trespass adds an element — usually that the person knew they had no consent and intended or recklessly risked causing fear for someone’s safety, or damaged a barrier to entry. It is a Class B misdemeanor, a Class A misdemeanor in a habitation, hospital, school, or on state property, and a Class E felony when an official’s residence is targeted because of their status.
Does a No Trespassing sign matter?
Yes. Compliant signage at the major entry points, or Tennessee’s purple paint marking, removes the three statutory defenses — reasonable belief of consent, no substantial interference, and leaving on request. Whether the notice actually complied with the statute is often worth examining.
Can a trespass charge be expunged?
A dismissal or a successfully completed diversion can be expunged. Trespass is not excluded from either form of diversion, so for an eligible defendant the path to a clean record is a normal part of resolving the case.
Talk to a Memphis Criminal Defense Lawyer
Brooks Law Firm — (901) 324-5000, or call or text (901) 412-2973. General information only, not legal advice; outcomes depend on the facts of your case.