Tom_in_CA
Elite Member
- Joined
- Dec 23, 2013
- Messages
- 20,772
As someone who has spent a considerable number of years enforcing laws, I can tell you that the modern intent of lost and found (or theft of lost/mislaid property) laws is exactly this. No LE agency that I have ever encountered expects anyone who finds unidentifiable obviously lost property to turn it in. It is strictly to keep unscrupulous people who would take advantage of unattended property, or latch on to property that might have been proceeds of another persons crime. It's also to eliminate a defense against possessing stolen property by claiming ignorance of the original crime.
Great post jhanson. And thank you for your service.
Yes, the *only* time a literal reading of the law would be invoked, is when some criminal trots out those lines as "reasons why he didn't turn it in to L&F". Or reasons why he's walking down the street with a stolen brand new Iphone, etc....
So in order to close the loop-holes, the law MAKES NO LOOPHOLES NOR VARIABLES. Otherwise, EVERY CROOK would be latching on to the loopholes. And LEO's could never get their job done .
So this is one of those things where if you asked-enough-lawyers "Can I ?", they would be forced to give you the technical answer. Yet *reality* is far different. We know full well (as do LEOs) that ....... seriously now.... no one who's lost their ring years ago is still looking for it. Nor will they ever be checking daily at the police station, etc....