2nd-Degree Tampering With a Motor Vehicle in Missouri: Penalties

Tampering with a motor vehicle in the second degree in Missouri is a Class A misdemeanor under Section 569.090, punishable by up to one year in county jail and a fine of up to $2,000.¹ The charge covers unauthorized contact with someone else’s vehicle short of driving it away, but a prior qualifying conviction can lift the same conduct to a Class D felony with up to seven years in prison.

What Conduct the Charge Covers

Section 569.090 reaches two kinds of vehicle-related conduct. The first is tampering with another person’s property with the purpose of causing them substantial inconvenience. In the vehicle context, that means acts like slashing tires, damaging paint, removing parts, siphoning fuel, or physically interfering with engine components. The second is unlawfully riding in or on another person’s automobile, airplane, motorcycle, motorboat, or other motor-propelled vehicle without permission.¹

The list of vehicles is broader than most people assume. Boats and small aircraft are included alongside cars and motorcycles. Sitting in an unlocked car that isn’t yours, climbing onto someone’s motorcycle, or removing a hubcap can each be enough on its own. The statute also covers utility property and utility meter tampering, which are separate subdivisions and don’t apply to vehicle cases.

What the Prosecution Has to Prove

The required mental state depends on which subdivision the state charges. For a property-tampering theory, prosecutors must show you acted with the purpose of causing substantial inconvenience to the owner. Carelessness isn’t enough. The state needs evidence you intended the interference itself.¹

For an unlawful-riding theory, the state must prove you rode in or on the vehicle without authorization. Missouri’s criminal code generally requires at least a knowing mental state, meaning you were aware you had no right to be there.² Permission from the owner or someone authorized by the owner defeats the charge.

What the state does not have to prove: that you tried to steal the vehicle, that you drove it, or that you caused any specific dollar amount of damage. The unauthorized nature of the contact is the offense.

How This Differs From First-Degree Tampering

The dividing line is whether you operated the vehicle or took possession of it. First-degree tampering under Section 569.080 covers knowingly possessing, receiving, selling, or operating someone else’s vehicle without their consent, and it’s a Class D felony carrying up to seven years in prison.³ Missouri has no separate joyriding statute, so briefly taking a car and returning it still falls under the first-degree offense.

In practice: damage a parked car but never move it, and you’re typically looking at second-degree. Start the engine and drive it, and you’ve crossed into first-degree territory. Prosecutors sometimes charge both and let the evidence decide which one holds up.

Penalties for the Class A Misdemeanor

A standard second-degree tampering conviction exposes you to:

Judges have wide discretion within those limits. A first-time offender who caused no damage and has no record often receives probation and a modest fine. Someone with prior contact with the system, or a case involving real damage, will see harsher treatment. Probation conditions typically require staying out of trouble, reporting if supervision is ordered, and completing anything else the court imposes. Violating those conditions gives the court authority to revoke probation and impose the underlying jail sentence.⁷

When Second-Degree Tampering Becomes a Felony

This is the trap most people don’t see coming. If you have a prior conviction for unlawfully riding in a vehicle under subdivision (2) of the tampering statute, or for certain stealing offenses under Section 570.030, a new second-degree tampering charge is enhanced to a Class D felony. That’s up to seven years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.⁸ 4

A misdemeanor with a maximum of a year in county turns into a felony with state prison exposure. Probation on a felony conviction runs one to five years rather than six months to two.⁶ Anyone with a qualifying prior needs to treat a new charge as a felony matter from day one, whatever the initial paperwork says.

Restitution and the Full Financial Picture

Beyond the fine, Missouri courts can order restitution to the vehicle owner for losses caused by the tampering. Crime victims have a constitutional right to restitution in Missouri, enforceable like any other civil judgment.⁹ That can include repairing locks, replacing broken glass, fixing damaged mechanical parts, or replacing accessories that were removed.

Courts often make restitution a mandatory condition of probation. If you fall behind, probation can be revoked and the jail sentence imposed. Missouri’s strictest restitution rule, which bars release from probation until the victim is paid in full, applies specifically to first-degree tampering convictions,¹⁰ but the practical pressure on a second-degree case is similar when restitution is a probation condition.

Defense fees, court costs, and lost wages from jail or court appearances usually eclipse the fine itself.

Getting the Conviction Off Your Record

A second-degree tampering conviction is eligible for expungement under Section 610.140. The waiting period is one year after you finish your sentence, including any probation.¹¹ To qualify, you need:

No new misdemeanor or felony convictions during the waiting period (minor traffic offenses under Chapters 301 through 307 don’t count)
All fines, restitution, and court costs paid in full
No pending charges
Conduct that shows you’re not a threat to public safety

Missouri caps each person at three misdemeanor expungements over a lifetime.¹¹ If your charge was enhanced to a felony, the waiting period is three years and it counts against a separate cap of two felony expungements. The court decides whether granting the petition serves the public interest. Once granted, you can legally answer “no” to criminal history questions on most applications, and the conviction should stop appearing on standard background checks.

Background Checks and CDL Concerns

Until expunged, a Class A misdemeanor shows up on ordinary criminal background checks. For commercial drivers, the exposure depends on the level of the offense. Federal CDL disqualification rules generally attach to felony-level vehicle offenses rather than misdemeanors, so a standard second-degree tampering conviction usually doesn’t cost you a CDL on its own. If the charge is enhanced to a felony under the repeat-offender provisions, that changes: a felony involving a motor vehicle can trigger a one-year CDL disqualification for a first offense and a lifetime disqualification for a second.

Given how quickly a second charge can escalate the stakes, anyone facing a second-degree tampering allegation in Missouri should treat it as more than a routine misdemeanor and get the case reviewed for prior-conviction exposure before making any decisions about plea or trial.

1
Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Revised Statutes 569.090 – Tampering in the Second Degree – Penalties
2
Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 562.016 – Culpable Mental States
3
Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 569.080 – Tampering in the First Degree – Penalty
4
Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 558.011 – Sentence of Imprisonment, Terms – Conditional Release
5
Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 558.002 – Fines for Offenses
6
Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 559.016 – Terms of Probation – Extension
7
Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 559.036 – Duration of Probation – Revocation
8
Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Revised Statutes 569.090 – Tampering in the Second Degree – Penalties
9
Justia Law. Missouri Constitution Article I Section 32 – Crime Victims Rights
10
Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 559.105 – Restitution May Be Ordered, When – Limitation on Release From Probation
11
Missouri Revisor of Statutes. Missouri Code 610.140 – Expungement of Certain Criminal Records