Mass. General Laws c.266 § 127

Willful, malicious or wanton destruction or injury to personal property, dwelling house or building of another

Updates

• Amended by St.1987, c. 468, § 5
• Amended by St.1994, c. 168, § 4
• Amended by St.2018, c. 69, § 154, effective April 13, 2018

Section 127

Whoever destroys or injures the personal property, dwelling house or building of another in any manner or by any means not particularly described or mentioned in this chapter shall, if such destruction or injury is willful and malicious, be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for not more than 10 years or by a fine of $3,000 or 3 times the value of the damage caused to the property so destroyed or injured, whichever is greater, and imprisonment in jail for not more than 2 ½ years; or if such destruction or injury is wanton, shall be punished by a fine of $1,000 or 3 times the value of the damage to the property so destroyed or injured, whichever is greater, or by imprisonment for not more than 2 ½ years; if the value of the damage to the property so destroyed or injured is not alleged to exceed $1,200, the punishment shall be by a fine of 3 times the value of the damage to property or by imprisonment for not more than 2 ½ years; provided, however, that where a fine is levied pursuant to the value of the damage to the property destroyed or injured, the court shall, after conviction, conduct an evidentiary hearing to ascertain the value of the damage to the property so destroyed or injured. The words “personal property”, as used in this section, shall also include electronically processed or stored data, either tangible or intangible, and data while in transit.

Last updated:	May 29, 2019