Man thought he could only be arrested for burglary at night

A man from Willoughby, Ohio, who believed he could only be charged with burglary if he committed the crime at night, has pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of breaking and entering.

According to police, 22-year-old James Blankenship's mother found her son attempting to break into her home through a first floor window late last month. The young man had not been welcome in his mother's home for approximately three months, nor did he have any possessions on the premises, police said.



Upon being discovered by his mother, the accused fled the scene. A neighbour alerted the police that he had witnessed a man running behind a nearby home. Blankenship was discovered hiding in a crawl space not far from his mother's house, police said.

At the time of the crime, Blankenship told officers he didn't think he could be arrested for burglary because it was not nighttime. Despite his misconception, Blankenship soon realized that people can, in fact, be arrested during the daytime for burglary. He was fined $100 and sentenced to 180 days in prison with a total of 120 of those days suspended.