Someone tried to steal my car now I'm worried

kafkathecat

OP from what you have added it appears the police are still investigating and may well still charge the man.

The law is there to protect everyone including people suspected of crime. The police arrived to see you assaulting a man; they would be failing in their duty if they did not investigate that as well.

I am frightened by how many people on this thread do not understand the law and feel attacked when anyone tries to explain it to them. If people are allowed to physically assault anyone they suspect of committing a crime you have lynch mob justice and innocent people get hurt. Allow the police to do their job.

Lotus-eater

kafkathecat wrote: »

I am frightened by how many people on this thread do not understand the law and feel attacked when anyone tries to explain it to them. If people are allowed to physically assault anyone they suspect of committing a crime you have lynch mob justice and innocent people get hurt. Allow the police to do their job.

Agreed. The law is the law, having a discussion on the merits and stupidity of the law is a different argument completely.

It seems a shame when people are posting about the reality of the interpretation of the law, the only things people really want to hear, are the "you should have hit him on the head with a shovel and buried him" posts"

It doesn't matter what you think should happen. The facts of the law are the facts.

ceridwen

kafkathecat wrote: »

OP from what you have added it appears the police are still investigating and may well still charge the man.

The law is there to protect everyone including people suspected of crime. The police arrived to see you assaulting a man; they would be failing in their duty if they did not investigate that as well.

I am frightened by how many people on this thread do not understand the law and feel attacked when anyone tries to explain it to them. If people are allowed to physically assault anyone they suspect of committing a crime you have lynch mob justice and innocent people get hurt. Allow the police to do their job.

I doubt anyone would try and deal with someone they just suspected of being an offender themselves.

But - where someone knows of 100% certainty - who is responsible for a criminal act (as is the case with O.P. - as she saw the thief trying to steal her car with her own eyes) then that is a rather different matter. Was she supposed to just let him get away with it then?

Lotus-eater

ceridwen wrote: »

Was she supposed to just let him get away with it then?

That's the point here isn't it?

Do you want the legal answer, or the answer most people agree with?

You know the answer to both, so asking pointless questions gets us nowhere.

dramaqueen1973

TeaCake wrote: »

He would have got more than a slap off me.

And me!!!!!!!!

Its been 6 weeks since my house was broken into whilst we were all sleeping, they stole car keys and nicked my beloved car! So believe me If I had of woken up things would have been different too!

I still cant get over the fact someone broke into my house whilst we were asleep!

The police let this piece of scum go OMG!!!! Oh its ok you go cos you had a slap and do you want to press charges....that is ludicous....what about us as victims...can we press charges for stealing our property that we have worked hard and saved for! Oh no that is out tough luck!!!!!

Drama xxx

RacyRed

3v3 wrote: »

Then I am sure the CCTV footage will give them both sides of the story and food for thought

Likewise, the OP should not have acted as judge and jury.

Ahhh, that is where we fundamentally disagree. I don't think she did act as judge and jury, she wasn't that distanced from the event.

The OP saw her property being removed and reacted. We may agree or disgree with how she reacted but, given the circumstances she found herself in, a reaction was to be expected.

That is why I disagree that her hitting the guy with her hand was unprovoked. He provoked it by stealing from her. Her precise reaction may have breached the law, but were not unprovoked. He took risks in stealing the car in the same way she took risks going after him.

I'm not argueing that the law gives the alleged car thief as much protection as the op is entitled to, but I am in disagreement with the way the police appeared to have handled this incident at the time.

He should not have been allowed to just walk away after having been asked if he wanted to press charges against the OP.

Whatever the build up to the event, he was, at the time the police arrived, found in posession of stolen goods.

Something in the way this was handled sends the wrong message from the police to the public, whatever the legalities.

vroombroom

someone tried to break into my house a few years ago, when I lived on my own, luckily my dogs heard and started barking. It scared the carp out of me and I'll never forget looking out of my bedroom window, watching the person calmly walking down the back garden and looking back up at me at the window. Omg it was scary.

My new house is a lot safer - its a mid terrace and we have a yard with high walls with broken glass on top of it. We have a baseball bat under the bed as well just in case x

Hope you're ok, OP x

Nara

I don't really get why going up behind a guy stealing your car and slapping him round the head is classed as an attack?

Pretty sure my dad did worse then this to me when i was naughty as a kid! and prolly what the guy stealing your car should have had more as as a child!

I could understand it if you had sneaked up behind him and hit him with a baseball bat or something but your hand? and slapping? its hardly an assault in my eyes and I doubt he even has a mark on him.
To be honest I like to think that if it went to court you would win hands down, I just love how strict the judges have been against all the rioters, sending them to prison and stuff no matter how much they cry about their human rights or how normally they are such a good person!

I'm sick of the hard working people being the ones who suffer because people think they can just take what isn't theirs because they can't be arsed to go work for it like the rest of us. If i saw someone stealing my car i would be out there like a shot with a whole lot more then my hand, no matter that my car is worth pennies its the red rage mist that decends when you realise someone is trying to ruin something you had to work hard for in life.

I agree with you OP and personally I wouldn't be happy to let this drop either. Hope things work out for you

Tropez

RacyRed wrote: »

Whatever the build up to the event, he was, at the time the police arrived, found in posession of stolen goods.

From the point of view of the police, this needs to be established and proven which the facts of the case actually make it somewhat difficult to do.

Firstly, the car had not been broken into nor had it been started and presumably no attempt had yet been made to hotwire it, disable any tracker/alarm etc. It had just been pushed.

Secondly, the police arrive not to find someone who isn't the owner in the car but to find the owner assaulting another person and here are where the difficulties emerge. While the owner may very well suspect this individual of being a thief (although this story certainly doesn't seem as clear cut as the OP initially suggested judging by the amount of additional information that has subsequently been supplied) the only proof the police have of a crime having taken place is their witnessing of an assault by the OP. How the car came to be where it was is, in fact, another matter and that matter will need investigating.

It really isn't as simple as some people are making it out to be and I can assure you given my experiences with police, with victims of crime and with people who have made the same slightly and unfortunately poor choices as the OP did in this situation that it is unlikely that the OP will be getting the desired result out of this.

ska_lover

Feel free to cut and paste it.

I persist? You do not have to keep replying, nor your side kick lotus-eater. I must admit, you are far more clever than lotus-eater as you would never be seen to throw insults such as 'thick' around in a public forum.