Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search

n2doc

(47,953 posts)
Tue Apr 16, 2013, 10:10 AM Apr 2013

Take the bait? NYPD anti-theft tactics criticized

By TOM HAYS



In this Monday, April 8, 2013 photo, Deirdre Myers poses for a picture near her home in New York. Police took Myers and her teen daughter into custody in 2010 in what's known as a "bait car" operation. It involved leaving a wad of cash in an unattended car and seeing if a would-be thief would take advantage. The dismissal of the case against the single mother has drawn attention to police tactics that a judge ruled went too far. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)


NEW YORK (AP) — Sometimes the bait is a small amount of cash in a stray wallet. Or a credit card. Even a pack of cigarettes can do the trick.

Police in New York City leave the items unattended — on subway platforms, on park benches, in cars — and wait to see if someone grabs them.

The New York Police Department says the practice has been a valuable tool for catching career criminals and deterring thefts in public places. But a recent court ruling throwing out a larceny case against a Bronx woman cast a harsh light on a tactic critics say too often sweeps up innocent people.

Judge Linda Poust Lopez found that there was no proof Deirdre Myers tried to steal anything — and that she was framed by a sting that took the tactic way too far.

more
http://bigstory.ap.org/article/take-bait-nypd-anti-theft-tactics-criticized#overlay-context=article/gunmen-attack-mogadishu-court-complex-witnesses

2 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
Take the bait? NYPD anti-theft tactics criticized (Original Post) n2doc Apr 2013 OP
The problem in that case was the application of the tactic geek tragedy Apr 2013 #1
If they never actually touched the money, they never had a case. rocktivity Apr 2013 #2
 

geek tragedy

(68,868 posts)
1. The problem in that case was the application of the tactic
Tue Apr 16, 2013, 10:11 AM
Apr 2013

rather than the tactic's inherent nature.

Ms. Meyees didn't do anything of a criminal nature.

rocktivity

(44,555 posts)
2. If they never actually touched the money, they never had a case.
Tue Apr 16, 2013, 10:33 AM
Apr 2013

Last edited Sat Mar 22, 2014, 12:37 PM - Edit history (1)

...(T)hey now require more evidence of intent — a suspect trying to hide a wallet or taking cash out of it and throwing it away — before making an arrest...

Myers' daughter, seeing that the driver left the car door open, went over and peered inside to see personal items that included what looked like a bundle of cash — in reality, a dollar bill wrapped around pieces of newspaper. The girl had called her mother over when another set of police officers suddenly pulled up in a van and forced them to the ground, according to Myers' account.

I once found a wallet on the beach near a garbage can -- apparently the thief took the cash and tried to drop it into the can from the boardwalk above, and missed. I took it home and mailed it the next day. If I'd been pulled over, I could have been busted???


rocktivity
Latest Discussions»General Discussion»Take the bait? NYPD anti-...