Police Crack Down on Car Thefts

http://www.freep.com/article/2009050...07038/1118/RSS

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Car thieves in metro Detroit, consider yourselves warned: Law-enforcement agents from 17 organizations aim to bring you down today.

For the third day this week, area agencies are joining forces to conduct a metro-wide sweep looking for suspected car thieves, as well as convicted ones who have violated the conditions of their probation or parole.


On Tuesday and Wednesday, the agencies --including sheriff's offices in Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties and the Warren city police -- have arrested 63 people and recovered 59 stolen cars, officials said.


"This presents quality-of-life problems for the community," Wayne County Sheriff Warren Evans said at a morning news conference.


"With resources dwindling, we have to work smarter" to catch auto thieves, he added.


The Warren Police Department teemed this morning with law-enforcement agents garbed in black and poised to conduct the final day of the three-day sweep.

They showed off tools of the car thief's trade, such as jigsaws and four-way lug wrenches.


Ray Johnson, a corporal with the Wayne County Sheriff's Office, said he has helped this week arrest several convicted thieves with outstanding warrants for violating their probation or parole.


"Some put up a chase," he said. "They don't want to go to prison."

Not that many end up there, Evans said. Because jails are overcrowded and the legal system is financially strapped, most car thieves won't serve time in prison until at least their fourth arrests, he said.


"It's demoralizing to officers" to see the thieves released back on the streets, Evans said, "but nobody is doing anything wrong."


Judges have to prioritize locking up violent offenders, he added, and more judges now are ordering thieves to wear GPS tethers to track their whereabouts.

Wayne County Chief Lawrence Meyer said officers have caught adults teaching teenagers how to steal cars, making it a multigenerational enterprise.

Twelve of the 63 people arrested this week have been minors, officials said.


People with information about stolen vehicles are asked to call Help Eliminate Auto Thefts, or HEAT, at 800-242-HEAT, which offers rewards ranging from $1,000 to $10,000.

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"Judges have to prioritize locking up violent offenders, he added..."

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This is an excellent example of government failing in its primary duty. You make something criminal to deter a person from doing it, because there is a penalty attached. If you only mete out the penalty the 3rd or 4th time they do it, then you are encouraging the activity.

If you don't have enough prison space, build more prisons! Don't talk to me about "budget cuts". Give every person -- in the short run -- a graduated tax increase that covers the exact cost of the additional prison, and -- in the long run -- I will have more money, because my car will not be stolen.

If we want to deter theft, let's not give thieves a "stern talking to". At present, criminals consider cops annoying and volatile, but ultimately powerless. This city cannot advance until we give teeth to our watchdogs.

NO MORE SPENDING ON PRISONS.


Anyone who suggests that is foolishly looking past who they've chosen to fill the existing ones with over the past twenty-five years...MINOR DRUG OFFENDERS.


Legalize everything. Let these unlucky freedom-seekers go en masse, so they can return to their families and society. NOW.

Then there'll be ALL SORTS of room for these violent perps...

I think this economy and other factors is going to force the government into some drastic action regarding the legality and taxation of some currently illegal products, and the punishment of users and currently incarcerated dealers.

That being the case, it's also a fair bet that along with this will come the death penalty option for juries to consider in the future.

Bringing back the death penalty will only make things cost more. We'd be worse off in the long run. You can't get rid of those guys fast enough.
As a deterrent, it doesn't work. It's not like Dick Tracy where someone stops in the middle of killing someone to think about the death penalty.
Year long appeals plus an occasional wrongful death sentence doesn't make it worth the while.