Homeowner hears burglars, steals their van

[mikepdx]

Homeowner hears burglars, steals their van

BELLEVUE, Wash. -- When most people see a crime in progress, they grab a phone, call 911 and then get out of the way.
But when Patrick Rosario discovered burglars in his own home, he decided to take things a step further: he drove off in their van.

Operator: 911, what are you reporting?
Rosario: Somebody's broken into my house.
Operator: I'm sorry?
Rosario: Somebody's broken into my house!...I just drove their car away. They've got nothing.
Operator: Their car?
Rosario: Yeah, I know. I stole their car.
Operator: OK, you can now be charged for that, so stop.

Rosario was greeted with high-fives from responding deputies,
but he admits taking the getaway car wasn't the safest move.

story:
Homeowner hears burglars, steals their van

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Those are my kind of deputies!

I can't imagine ANY prosecutor would believe he could
convince a jury to find the homeowner guilty of auto theft....

[hoser147]

That's too good..

[davidmc36]

Originally Posted by mikepdx

Operator: OK, you can now be charged for that, so stop.

Pinhead!!

[AlmostHandy]

lol yeah this was on the local news the other day. Made me laugh then too.

[ki4rvh]

So funny. I would never have thought of that.

[chrismol1]

Originally Posted by mikepdx

I can't imagine ANY prosecutor would believe he could
convince a jury to find the homeowner guilty of auto theft....

Just like that burglar who was shot robbing a house and he sued the homeowner and he actually won the lawsuit
Someone might be crazy enough to try it with what there getting away with these days

[burner50]

Originally Posted by chrismol1

Just like that burglar who was shot robbing a house and he sued the homeowner and he actually won the lawsuit
Someone might be crazy enough to try it with what there getting away with these days

Big difference...

You're talking civil court, not criminal court. Yes the guy could be charged with theft, but can the prosecutor convince 12 jurors that he is guilty of it? Beyond that could the prosecutor convince the judge that the guy needs punished?

[chrismol1]

Originally Posted by burner50

Big difference...

You're talking civil court, not criminal court. Yes the guy could be charged with theft, but can the prosecutor convince 12 jurors that he is guilty of it? Beyond that could the prosecutor convince the judge that the guy needs punished?

its all rediculous, justice has changed so much over the years

[davidbond21]

Originally Posted by chrismol1

its all rediculous, justice has changed so much over the years

No, I just think this is an excellent example and use of officer discretion.

[JoeyC]

Originally Posted by burner50

Big difference...

You're talking civil court, not criminal court. Yes the guy could be charged with theft, but can the prosecutor convince 12 jurors that he is guilty of it?

If the jury does it job and follows the LAW, they would find the guy guilty of the theft if in fact he did steal the vehicle as reported. The prosecutor doesn't have to charge this guy under the circumstances however.

Originally Posted by burner50

Beyond that could the prosecutor convince the judge that the guy needs punished?

Could the prosecutor convince the judge (or jury) that the guy needs (to be) punished? Under the circumstances of the theft the most lenient of punishment would hopefully prevail, that is if there is a mandatory penalty at all. I suppose it is possible to find him guilty without a penalty, if it is so written in the law.

[mikepdx]

The theft statute in my state requires proof of intent.
So, I'd say not guilty if it happened here.

His intent was to stop a property crime upon himself from taking place,
and to slow the perpetrators down for capture by the police.

Anyway, 911 Call Takers aren't lawyers, prosecutors or the police.
They were being PC, as they were trained to be.

[AlmostHandy]

right, they would never go the other way.

"Sir, look outside. Do you see the robber's vehicle? Does it look like it's running? See if you can sneak over to it and get in. If you can drive away in his car, you'll thwart the crime, and I can clear these officers."

(Boy, that would be something to catch on a scanner, eh?)

[LarryN]

About 20 years ago I had a dirt bag room mate that screwed me over big time. So I kicked him out owing me money. About a week later I saw how he was arrested for trying to rob this woman’s house. What happened was the woman came home and found her door wide open and a strange car in the driveway. The keys were still I the ignition. So she takes them out and goes in to her house. So scares off my friend and his buddies without their car. He went back later to get the keys back. Needless to say he was arrested.

So I see this in the paper and I call him. I asked if he came up with any of the money he owed me. He tells me that he has a computer he would trade for his debt. I told him I didn’t need one but my buddy Sam would want to buy it. I called the police and explained the situation. They sent me to his house with an undercover cop. He sells the cop all this stolen stuff. They went back and arrested him yet again. He goes to prison and I got transferred out of the area.

[texasemt13]

Larry,

Quite a crafty woman I'd say. I'd probably done a little differently than her:

"Hey, I noticed your car parked in my driveway. I took the pleasure of turning it off for you, since I noticed you left my door open, and I didn't want the house to smell like exhaust."

"What's that? Oh yeah, I have your keys."

"Oh you want them?"

"Just reach over and grab them off the front sight of my pistol... go ahead... it doesn't bite... hard."

And people wonder why others feel the need to carry a pistol.

[kb2vxa]

How mant times have I told you NEVER leave the keys in the car?!?!?!