Yarbrough

Burglary is committed when a person “enters any . . . building” with the intent of committing “larceny or any felony.” (Pen. Code, § 459; further statutory references are to the Penal Code.) In People v. Valencia (2002) 28 Cal.4th 1, 11 [ 120 Cal.Rptr.2d 131 , 46 P.3d 920 ] (Valencia), this court held that a building is entered when the building’s “outer boundary” is crossed. A building’s outer boundary, Valencia said, encompasses “any element that encloses an area into which a reasonable person would believe that a member of the general public could not pass without authorization.” (Ibid.) An “unenclosed balcony,” Valencia noted, would not satisfy that test because such a balcony cannot be “reasonably” viewed as being “part of the building’s outer boundary.” (Id. at p. 12, fn. 5, italics omitted.)

Here, defendant was charged with residential burglary after climbing onto a second-story apartment’s private balcony, which was surrounded by a metal railing some four feet in height and accessible only through the single bedroom’s sliding glass door. The trial court instructed the jury that such a balcony was within the apartment’s outer boundary, and the jury convicted…