(a) A person is guilty of criminal mischief in the third degree when, having no reasonable ground to believe that such person has a right to do so, such person: (1) Intentionally or recklessly (A) damages tangible property of another, or (B) tampers with tangible property of another and thereby causes such property to be placed in danger of damage; or (2) damages tangible property of another by negligence involving the use of any potentially harmful or destructive force or substance, including, but not limited to, fire, explosives, flood, avalanche, collapse of building, poison gas or radioactive material; or (3) intentionally or recklessly (A) damages tangible property owned by the state or a municipality that is located on public land, or (B) tampers with tangible property owned by the state or a municipality that is located on public land and thereby causes such property to be placed in danger of damage; or (4) damages tangible property owned by the state or a municipality that is located on public land by negligence involving the use of any potentially harmful or destructive force or substance, including, but not limited to, fire, explosives, flood, avalanche, collapse of building, poison gas or radioactive material.

Attorney's Note

Under the Connecticut General Statutes, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:
ClassPrisonFine
Class B misdemeanorup to 6 monthsup to $1,000
For details, see Conn. Gen. Stat.53a-36
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Terms Used In Connecticut General Statutes 53a-117

  • another: may extend and be applied to communities, companies, corporations, public or private, limited liability companies, societies and associations. See Connecticut General Statutes 1-1
  • Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
  • Person: means a human being, and, where appropriate, a public or private corporation, a limited liability company, an unincorporated association, a partnership, a government or a governmental instrumentality. See Connecticut General Statutes 53a-3

(b) Criminal mischief in the third degree is a class B misdemeanor.