Originally Posted by
FBinNY
As far as any criminality goes, it might be limited to littering. This event is akin to tossing a banana peel on the sidewalk and having someone slip on it and hit his head. This isn't to let the tosser off the hook, but a prosecutor would have a tough time making a case of negligence based on this chain of events. In any case, folks who pick through trash bins aren't usually from mainstream society, so we have to keep our expectations realistic.
So far, no description of the item.
The intention may well have been to toss the item aside, then once the bin was scoured, jump out and throw the items into the shopping cart. So, while the mystery item may have been left at the scene, it may be a stretch to call it littering.
If the guy is actually homeless, and sticks around Vancouver, it may be possible to locate him. There have to be a limited number of places where he would hang out. Soup kitchens, homeless shelters, homeless camps, bridges, etc. Heck, he may return to the same dumpster in a week.
Of course, there are also some people who are not homeless who choose to dumpster dive for food, or perhaps other things too.
However, too much of our society revolves around an eye for an eye penal code.
If this was truly an accident, would society benefit from spending hundreds of thousands of dollars in prosecution, and perhaps incarceration for a year? I suppose the description is "Aboriginal". What does that mean? I think of Australia. If the guy is an alien, then he could be deported and save the effort of prosecution and incarceration.