Originally Posted by
Unreasonable
At that point I feel like we're just arguing semantics of the word "theft". By doing everything people have talked about, you're in no way trying to deny the owner the right to his property. Just because you've taken it doesn't mean you're trying to keep it away from someone. Sure, call taking something that appears to be abandoned and going through all the proper processes to make sure someone who's looking for it can recover it theft. Then use the same word to describe going to a bike rack with bolt cutters, cutting a lock, and riding away on a bike that was locked there, making sure the owner never sees it again.
It's been suggested that posting an ad to Craig's List, (and as the police require) placing an ad in the weekly newspaper, leaving a note so that the owner can contact the "finder" and recover their property. The only problem with all of the above is as has been pointed out how many homeless people have access to The Net, or read the newspaper, or have the change to call the police?
IF the bike belongs to a homeless person with limited resources how is he suppose to track it down?
And given that most homeless people (and a lot of non-homeless people) have limited income they can't afford to engage in a lengthy search for their bike or to replace. And also given that most homeless (and again non-homeless people) have limited income that can't easily afford to replace their stolen bike(s).
You can "dress it up" and "dance around the truth" all you want, but taking of property that does
NOT belong to you
IS theft.
IN case you need it here is the definition of theft from dictionary.com:
theft
/θɛft/
Show Spelled[theft]
–noun 1. the
act of stealing;
the wrongful taking and carrying away of the personal goods or property of another; larceny.
2. an instance of this.
3. Archaic . something stolen.
Origin:
before 900; Middle English; Old English thēfth, thēofth; see
thief,
-th1 ; cognate with Old Norse thȳfth, obsolete Dutch diefte