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FL: Thief returns gun stolen from car to gun owner with a note about gun safety
- Thread starter Da_lucche
- Start date
one-eyed Jack
Manufacturer
Right you are. However, most RSOs want the flag in the gun. So, what I do is put in the flag (a round dowel) and drop the bolt on it. Jack.
Scarecrow
Army Veteran
But (bear in mind, I cannot open the story, so I am going off what is being said in the op) the weapon was never removed. It was never off the premises. If I see a bike laying in a yard and I move it to the garage, that is not theft, as it was never borrowed, just moved. It's arguing semantics, mind you, as the person probably should never have touched it in the first place, but if that gun had been stolen by some douche and used to rob a liquor store, the screams of "what an idiot for not keeping it hidden and his door locked" would be loud on these forums. The guy had a message given to him "this could have gone a lot worse, keep these things hidden from view in the future", the property was not stolen and returned, it was moved, and it only cost him a mag worth of ammo for being a little dumb about how he keeps his tools laying around.
Going into the car analogy, if I left my car parked in the road and came out of my house to find it in my driveway with a note that said "don't leave your car in the road, running, with the key in the ignition and doors unlocked, someone might steal it", I would be pissed at myself for being so careless, and thankful that someone honest found it instead of some ghetto douchebag kid who took it for a joyride.
Going into the car analogy, if I left my car parked in the road and came out of my house to find it in my driveway with a note that said "don't leave your car in the road, running, with the key in the ignition and doors unlocked, someone might steal it", I would be pissed at myself for being so careless, and thankful that someone honest found it instead of some ghetto douchebag kid who took it for a joyride.
lol you cant be serious? just because you leave your car running on the side of the road and unlocked doesn't give an unknown person the right to make entry into YOUR vehicle and move it because of his own personal agenda.
Scarecrow
Army Veteran
So... what I'm understanding here is that if the gun had been legitimately stolen from his unlocked car and used to rob and rape his neighbor, you guys would be feeling sorry for him for essentially leaving a loaded gun sitting out in his yard? The unlocked door between the gun and the outdoors does not constitute any form of protection from thievery, it obviously didn't even slow down the guy(or girl) who grabbed it and wrote the note. So, even though there is no law saying he cannot do this(and I agree that there should not be a law against it, The fewer laws regarding guns, the better) Common sense does not intervene and say "hey, maybe I should hide that a bit so someone doesn't steal it"?
As for the ammo, he'll probably find it in his bushes.
Yeah, but that didn't actually happen, so way to construct a strawman argument to try to shore up your position.
![[rofl]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/013.gif "ROFL [rofl]")
OK I'll put that aside for a second and play ball.. he's still not liable. He's not the person that robbed and raped your neighbor. The fact that a thief stole a tool from him to do it is irrelevant to that crime.
Is leaving a loaded gun on a seat in an unlocked car stupid? Sure. Should it be "illegal"? Probably not. He was still a victim of theft though, whether you want to admit it or not.
Maybe he intended to and forgot to do it. Shit happens. Yes, he made himself vulnerable to theft but implying that he is responsible for the theft itself is absurd.
-Mike
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Scarecrow
Army Veteran
Yeah, but that didn't actually happen, so way to construct a strawman argument to try to shore up your position.
OK I'll put that aside for a second and play ball.. he's still not liable. He's not the person that robbed and raped your neighbor. The fact that a thief stole a tool from him to do it is irrelevant to that crime.
Is leaving a loaded gun on a seat in an unlocked car stupid? Sure. Should it be "illegal"? Probably not. He was still a victim of theft though, whether you want to admit it or not.
Maybe he intended to and forgot to do it. Shit happens. Yes, he made himself vulnerable to theft but implying that he is responsible for the theft itself is absurd.
-Mike
I agree with this, as I said, it was a good Samaritan action from someone who saw that the gun laying out in an unlocked car was a stupid action, and they corrected the situation. They should not have stolen the ammo, but that is not what I'm arguing, I'm arguing that the guy was an idiot for leaving the gun out in the open, loaded, and completely unsecured. I do not see how anyone can say that the guys gun was stolen, when the gun was not stolen, the ammo was... and I still doubt that the ammo was stolen, it was probably dumped in the bushes or dropped in the car. We did the same thing to the Iraqis when we did our cordon and searches: disassemble the AK, empty the mag, and hide the ammo somewhere it will be found, typically under the blanket on their bed. Keeps you from getting shot at as you return to base.
I think I would have probably preferred to knock on the door and let him know his car doors were unlocked, but that is just me, MYOFB only goes until my own safety comes into play, and anyone who steals that gun is more than likely going to use it for nefarious purpose, and that impacts my safety if I live nearby.
ETA: Illegal should not come in to play when it comes to guns in general. Common sense and self-policing are what are needed, not another ****ing law... the problem is that jackasses leave their guns in unlocked cars, bad s*** happens, and people react with stricter laws "for the kids". I'm kind of surprised that this group is so adamant about the "thief" needs to get punished, when the gun could have just as easily been stolen by a gang and used in crimes that would have pushed moonbats towards stricter gun controls, i.e. storage laws, no loaded weapons in cars, no weapons in cars unless going to or from a range, etc. As I see it, the guy was corrected, no new laws are going to be created, no one was hurt, and he'll be more careful(hopefully) about being stupid with his firearm. All at the (supposed) cost of a mag of ?.40 S&W?
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No, my comment specifically addressed other comments that the thief in this case did not actually commit a crime. I did not make any statements as to the wisdom of leaving a loaded gun in an unlocked car.
Scarecrow
Army Veteran
Fair enough, I can accept that. I had initially discounted the ammo being missing. Accounted for it in the previous post...
What I dont understand is the neighbor didnt think it was ok for him to leave the gun in his car but that it was ok to leave it in a brown bag outside his door. I realize he unloaded it but this seems like strange reasoning. I am also curious as to how he knew it was there.
FL theft statute only requires an intent to temporarily deprive the other person of a right to their property. I believe the temporary criteria is satisfied.
I see guns all the time tossed up on people's dashboard in locked cars, particularly when you get out in the boonies. It may not be abnormal for that part of FL. Still probably a bad idea, but not illegal.
Why wasn't SWAT/DHS/FBI/PTA called in to investigate the suspicious brown bag?
I see guns all the time tossed up on people's dashboard in locked cars, particularly when you get out in the boonies. It may not be abnormal for that part of FL. Still probably a bad idea, but not illegal.
Why wasn't SWAT/DHS/FBI/PTA called in to investigate the suspicious brown bag?
MALDENQB02
NES Member
Irresponsible gun owner IMO. if it was an actual thief that went and killed somebody with a gun that wasn't properly stored, it would have given the Anti Gun people a lot to play with...
Lock up your guns responsibly people
Lock up your guns responsibly people
MisterHappy
NES Member
- Joined
- Jul 28, 2009
- Messages
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How do YOU define "properly stored"?
It seems from the article that there was no violation of Florida law.
And, while "out in the open" has been used, nowhere in the video, or the text in the OP does it say that it was not "hidden", or in a container, or the glove box, or what.
The guy's car was in his driveway; the doors to the car were, apparently closed; There is no mention of whether the window(s) were down or not, but that's not relevant, IMO.
It was an actual thief - a person, or persons entered private property, and removed item(s) without permission. If it was a neighbor....then it's even worse, I'd say, than if it was a walk-by robbery.
As long as one is within the laws to which one is subject....that's it!
If you (chambersbos) are the arbiter of firearms responsibility, please tell us what you consider to be appropriate.
I'm sure you'll find a receptive audience, here.
Aside of in MA, since when is anyone obligated to provide a form of protection from thievery for any of their valuables?
MAGG
NES Member
This didn't happen in MA, it was in FL! In FL it is legal to leave a loaded gun in your car/glove box, etc. It is quite common. Not sure you even need a license to carry it in a car that way.
You don't need a license to own guns in FL. Local chiefs have no say in issuing licenses, it is done by the state with a single set of rules.
You are thinking too much like a MA inmate! "
Yeah I guess I do think like a Ma Inmate. I wasnt sure of the laws in Fla as I can hardly keep track of em here in mass haha But still my mindset is not to leave a loaded gun in my car even if it was perfectly legal to do so as the law states. Maybe its due to my lack of trust or having my car broken into 3 times and my house 4 times when I lived in Ft Lauderdale for college back in the early 90"s I was allready poor as hell and being robbed that many times in a 3 year stretch and also having a loaded gun pulled on me have soured my thinking. But hey just being honest with my thoughts/actions which I know never match up with everyone lses on NES
You don't need a license to own guns in FL. Local chiefs have no say in issuing licenses, it is done by the state with a single set of rules.
You are thinking too much like a MA inmate! "
Yeah I guess I do think like a Ma Inmate. I wasnt sure of the laws in Fla as I can hardly keep track of em here in mass haha But still my mindset is not to leave a loaded gun in my car even if it was perfectly legal to do so as the law states. Maybe its due to my lack of trust or having my car broken into 3 times and my house 4 times when I lived in Ft Lauderdale for college back in the early 90"s I was allready poor as hell and being robbed that many times in a 3 year stretch and also having a loaded gun pulled on me have soured my thinking. But hey just being honest with my thoughts/actions which I know never match up with everyone lses on NES
That is because that is how Mass has you brainwashed to think it needs to be done. In most free states, there are no laws telling you how you must store firearms (or anything for that matter) in your home. Being in Mass though, you do not know any other way.
On any given thread like this you can argue common sense when the law is against you, or you can argue the law when common sense is against you. In this thread there are too many arguments in favor of the law when common sense is flat-out against the Florida guy. It is plain old dumb to leave a loaded weapon in an unlocked car, anywhere. And that's especially so in some kind of residential neighborhood. One way in which the law would prevail, in a big way, is when our FL friend got accused of negligence because some neighborhood kid ended up with the weapon and did some damage with it. If indeed someone took the weapon, removed the cartridges, and gave it back to him then he did the FL guy a favor.
MAGG
NES Member
with all due respect(and no aggressive tone) racenet thats how my dad always taught me to never leave a fire arm(loaded or not) out. So either way its instilled in me I guess. I wont be changing that way of thinking no matter where I live etc. Just my idea of safety I guess
I have no issues with that. To each their own. And if I may ask, where is your dad from?
MAGG
NES Member
Boston, born and raised. I wouldnt call him a rule follower for the most part when he was younger either haha Hes got some doozies of stories and served time in the army and then the gaurd for a bunch of years
