Locked Out By The Landlord
Mo. Rev. Stat. § 441.233 — removing a tenant without a court order is forcible entry and detainer
Only by judicial process and court order. A Missouri landlord who removes or excludes a tenant or the tenant's belongings without judicial process and a court order, or removes the doors or locks, is guilty of forcible entry and detainer under chapter 534. So is a landlord who willfully interrupts electric, gas, water or sewer service to the tenant, unless it is done for health or safety reasons.
The exception is abandonment. A unit is treated as abandoned only if the landlord reasonably believes the tenant moved out for good, rent has been unpaid for thirty days, the landlord posts a notice on the unit and mails it by first class and certified mail, and the tenant neither pays nor answers in writing within ten days after both the posting and the mailing.
Sources for this section (2)
- Mo. Rev. Stat. § 441.233 — Landlord's unlawful removal or exclusion of tenant, liability
- Mo. Rev. Stat. § 441.065 — Abandonment of rental premises, when, procedure
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Missouri attorney.