Under s.9(1)a the offence is complete as soon as the perpetrator enters the building. Under s.9(1)b the offence is complete only when the specific offence is completed or attempted.
In other words, a person is guilty of burglary if he sets out to enter a building and steal, rape or injure, or if he does enter a building and then does one of these things.
The reason that there are two separate sections in the Act is that s.9(1)a allows a person to be convicted even if he does not get as far as carrying out the act (e.g., if he is prevented from doing so), while s.9(1)b allows a conviction if a person has no specific intent at the point of entry, but opportunistically offends afterwards.
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