Destruction of property, looting or injury of persons during state of emergency; penalty; liability for conduct of another.
Del. Code tit. 20, § 3128
in effect(a) During a state of emergency, whoever maliciously destroys or damages any real or personal property or maliciously injuries another shall be guilty of a felony.
(b) Whoever violates this section shall be guilty of a Class C felony.
(c) Any person over 16 years old who violates this section shall be prosecuted as an adult.
(d) A person is guilty of an offense under this section committed by another person when:
(1) Acting with the state of mind that is sufficient for commission of the offense, such person causes an innocent or irresponsible person to engage in conduct constituting the offense; or
(2) Intending to promote or facilitate the commission of the offense that person:
a. Solicits, requests, commands, importunes or otherwise attempts to cause the other person to commit it; or
b. Aids, counsels or agrees or attempts to aid the other person in planning or committing it; or
c. Having a legal duty to prevent the commission of the offense, fails to make a proper effort to do so.
(e) In any prosecution for an offense under this section in which the criminal liability of the accused is based upon the conduct of another person pursuant to this section, it is no defense that:
(1) The other person is not guilty of the offense in question because of irresponsibility or other legal incapacity or exemption or because of unawareness of the criminal nature of the conduct in question or of the accused’s criminal purpose or because of other factors precluding the mental state required for the commission of the offense; or
(2) The other person has not been prosecuted for or convicted of any offense based on the conduct in question or has previously been acquitted thereof or has been convicted of a different offense or in a different degree or has legal immunity from prosecution for the conduct in question.
Source: DE Code (Official Site)URL: https://delcode.delaware.gov/title20/c031/sc04/index.htmlFetched: 10/4/2026