Dr Monterosso said it was difficult to find statistics to show whether this method of proactive policing reduced crime.
In order for it to be plausible that it would reduce crime the police would need to be open about the fact that they are using this tactic. The only reason more than a handful of people actually know about this is the sound journalism by Mya Kordic
It may be legal but it is thoroughly immoral and one suspects if it was a white kid with wealthy parents it would’ve been chucked out.
How is it immoral?
I loathe the fact that to go to my local shops I have to drive my fucking car because there is a high chance that some fuckwit will steal my bike or scooter if I lock it at the entrance.
Fuck people who steal bikes and scooters. All they are doing is grabbing on to people barely one rung up the societal ladder than they are and pulling them down.
Go steal from a large corporation instead if you want sympathy.
In Singas, some people don’t even bother locking their bikes. Others will just slip a chain with a combination lock through the back wheel. Almost none of them get filched. They’d be gone very quickly in Perth.
There are ways of doing this without entrapment. If they want to catch bike and scooter thieves they can stake out the bike racks. I suspect no sane person leaves their bike unlocked there so they have to contrive an artificial situation to entice someone to commit a crime. How is this valuable policing? Had the police not bought a scooter and left it unlocked no crime would’ve been committed.
I have no illusions that the young fellow in question is an upstanding citizen but how is public interest served here? One kid gets a fine and arguably may hesitate before doing the same thing again but the problem is not this one kid, it is systemic and were it not for this news article no-one would even know about it meaning it is useless even for deterrence.
It is a waste of everyone’s time, drags a kid who likely already has a shit life through the courts further alienating him, and did not even protect the property of a real person.
I don’t think it’s necessarily so pointless.
I do agree that it’s ethically dubious and in a perfect world you’d have enough police to monitor areas where this is likely to happen, but that’s not really the reality.
I don’t really agree that no crime would’ve been committed if the police hadn’t left a scooter there. Perhaps that’s true, but it’s more likely to me that delinquents are looking for opportunities all day.
I also don’t agree that we should avoid charging kids with this type of crime. If the court is producing bad outcomes then that is what should be addressed.
On balance, I think it’s the last, worst option. However, if police don’t have the resources to manage this problem then it would allow you to grab a few kids who are hanging out at the same shop every day stealing everyone’s stuff.
A $250 fine and a stern talking to basically is being chucked out.
Nobody enticed the dude to commit a crime. He’s a big boy who made that decision all by himself. Simply being in position to catch people who made that choice is not entrapment.
The police deliberately created an opportunity for a crime to be committed, had they not created that situation the crime would not have been committed. It is a textbook case of entrapment. You may think it’s valid, but it is entrapment.
You’re essentially saying that it is entirely reasonable for an escooter left outside the shops to be stolen. I disagree with that take. People should be able to park their bike/scooter/whatever, duck inside for a few essentials and expect their ride to still be out the front of the shops when they come out. That you think they can’t speak poorly of your attitude to people in your community.
For what it’s worth, I agree with you that the risk of my bike being stolen outweighs the benefits of me taking it to the shops. So I suppose I’m in the same boat as you in a way. But cases like this may make opportunistic thieves reconsider that theft. Which I can only see as a good thing. I always feel guilty when I take the car for a small shop. I live close enough that the bike would be quicker and easier than driving if I could trust it not to get stolen.
The dude committed a crime. The fact that the police set the scenario up is completely beside that simple point. That’s a decision entirely in his own hands and at some point, a grown adult needs to take responsibility for their actions.
No, it is of course a shitty thing to do to steal a scooter. What I am saying is that this is an unreasonable way for police to behave. See my other comment in this thread.
With regards to this being a deterrent to other thieves, how? The police didn’t let anyone know they were doing it and didn’t let anyone know after the fact, the only reason anyone knows about it is that an investigative reporter dug it up.
had they not created that situation the crime would not have been committed
Or maybe the thief would go steal a scooter elsewhere? Police don’t go after bike/scooter thieves that aren’t caught in the act. This is one of the only ways to catch them in the act. 0 sympathy from me
@HalfEarthMedic it would be interesting to know if the police pull this shit in the Western Suburbs. I doubt it.
The old trick or reducing crime by increasing it.
@Longmactoppedup I know that shopping centre. And it can be a bit of an adventure/stabby.
But knowingly taking something that’s not yours is immoral.Especially something the rich would rarely use. Steal helicopters and fancy cars, that’s what real g’s would steal
*centers. Not centrees or centrays.
I’ll take for granted your error was in good faith. Words are written differently outside of the USA. If this was written in America, it would use the American spelling “center”, however it was written in Australia, which uses the British spelling “centre”.
If you’re interested, the spelling is derived from Middle French “centre”, which became part of English post Norman conquest. However, in the early 19c the American lexicographer, Noah Webster simplified many words to be more phonetical and these were adopted by the US. Most of the Commonwealth countries will still use the British spellings.
Oh wow, i didn’t know the Noah Webster bit, thats really interesting!
Where are you from?
Don’t bother, check their history. Absolutely not worth engaging with them.
Thank you for the heads up. Guns try and keep my hate boner at bay and ignore this idiot
The eshays hang out in the centrays, untcay.
