On Wednesday, October 15, 2014 2:32:58 AM UTC-4, Ashton Crusher wrote:
On Wed, 15 Oct 2014 01:06:18 -0400, micky

wrote:



OT Should I tell the police?



About three or four weeks ago, I saw a sticker on the rear window of a

car parked in my n'hood, the parking lot of a townhouse n'hood, saying

it would be towed away because it had a flat tire. No deadline was

given. The HOA does this, aiui, only if someone has complained. Of

course we have more than our share** of petty people who would complain.



**Unless there are so many petty people in the world that we have no

more than our share.



So I pumped his tire up.



Today I pumped it up again, which means the leak is slow.



The car is in excellent condition, has no dents or scratches, the paint

is perfect, it's not dirty, and looks very nice. Valid plates. I

assume someone went on vacation and will start driving it again when he

gets back.



OTOH, most people don't take three week vacations and conceivably, the

car was stolen and left here, parked properly with the door locked.

(well, I haven't tried the door. I just assume it's locked) If it's

stolen, the real owner should get it back before he buys another car.



So I called the police and just wanted them to run the plate, and if

they said it was stolen, I'd tell them where they or the owner can come

and get it.



But the cop wants me to tell him where it is, so they can "roll by and

look at it", and he says they won't do anything if there isn't a

problem.



What problem could there be except that the owner reported it stolen?**

If they tell me that I'll believe them and I'll tell them where it is.

But if it's not stolen, I DON'T WANT TO CAUSE TROUBLE FOR THE OWNER, and

the police, for all the good they do, are also very good at causing

trouble. After all, I'm the one pumping up the tire so it won't be

towed away.



**One idea, it could have the wrong plates on it, but we could probably

verify that on the phone too. The DMV records show the make. Do they

also show the model and color? I think so. If the plates don't match

the make or model or color, then too I would tell them where the car is.



Would you tell the police where it is before they told you it was stolen

or misplated?





I would check the doors. If they are locked it seems unlikely it is

stolen, why would thieves bother to lock it. If it is unlocked look

in the glove box for the registration to get the owners name. I don't

think you can be arrested for getting in an unlocked car.

You could be arrested by the police on suspicion of trying to steal the car,
since you have no business being in it. You could also be arrested later,
if someone saw you enter the car, told the owner about it, and the owner
later finds his notebook PC and cell phone missing.

I really don't understand the need to get involved in something like this.
The HOA tagged the car that has been sitting there for several weeks, had
a flat tire, etc. The process is working. Last thing I want to do is go
poking around in someone else's car.