Company Claims Patent On Subdomains
Wireless Laptops In Libraries

Bait Cars Catching Car Thieves

(Mis)Uses of Technology

from the easy-pickings dept

Mon, Mar 29th 2004 12:19am — Mike Masnick
Over in Arizona, it seems that the police have come up with a fairly effective way to cut down auto theft. They get previously stolen or wrecked vehicles that are likely targets (SUVs, of course), trick them out with high tech monitoring gadgetry (including both video and audio monitoring technology along with GPS), and then stick them in high auto theft areas. Sensors notify the police when one of these bait cars has been broken into, and the police will follow it while the audio/video equipment watches and listens to everything the thief does. The police have the option, when appropriate, to automatically disable the car, while locking its doors. They've caught over 50 car thieves this way - and not a single case has needed to go to trial, since the evidence is so strong, the crooks 'fess up or cut a plea bargain deal. More importantly, they have publicized the program enough that the rate of car theft is dropping, since thieves are realizing it's riskier than before.
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11 Comments

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  1. identicon
    Oliver Wendell Jones, 29 Mar 2004 @ 6:21am

    Poison gas?

    Is it too much to ask that it be legal to have the equipment flood the interior of the vehicle with a poison gas after locking the doors?

    Or is that still illegal?

    [ link to this | view in thread ]

  2. identicon
    prarie dog, 29 Mar 2004 @ 7:17am

    Re: Poison gas?

    The police have been running this program in the Vancouver area for a year now, and its very succesful.

    Poison gas how about an electric chair,it fries you when you grab the wheel and step on the gas.

    [ link to this | view in thread ]

  3. identicon
    Permanent4, 29 Mar 2004 @ 9:28am

    No Subject Given

    IANAL, and I recognize a good deterrent when I see one, but isn't this a form of entrapment?

    [ link to this | view in thread ]

  4. icon
    Mike (profile), 29 Mar 2004 @ 9:41am

    Re: No Subject Given

    Leaving a car to be stolen? I don't think so. Wouldn't the police officers have to point out the stolen car and say "that looks like a good car to steal, why don't you steal it?" or something like that for it to be entrapment? If they just leave a bait car out and let the person steal it, I don't see how it's entrapment... but like you, IANAL.

    [ link to this | view in thread ]

  5. identicon
    Charles W., 29 Mar 2004 @ 10:51am

    Entrapment

    IANAL either, but from what I understand entrapment requires the officer to do something to convence you to do the action. Example would be using an unmarked cop car to try to get people to race em, and when they start speeding pull em over, and give them a ticket. Leaving a parked car in a parking lot wouldn't count.

    -Charles W.

    [ link to this | view in thread ]

  6. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 29 Mar 2004 @ 11:14pm

    How About...

    How about leaving a $20 bill on the sidewalk and arresting whoever picks it up?

    [ link to this | view in thread ]

  7. icon
    Mike (profile), 29 Mar 2004 @ 11:28pm

    Re: How About...

    Picking up $20 that someone dropped is not the same as breaking into a car...

    [ link to this | view in thread ]

  8. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 30 Mar 2004 @ 10:44am

    Re: How About...

    No, technically it isn't. But then, breaking into a truck isn't exactly the same as breaking into a car either. One is a car, the other is truck. But, the principle IS the same.

    I remember seeing a story about one of these "stings". The police left the bait car unlocked with the keys hanging in the ignition. Seems a lot like placing money on the sidewalk to me, in principle that is.

    [ link to this | view in thread ]

  9. identicon
    Lou, 23 Aug 2004 @ 8:54am

    Re: How About...

    Paper money is not register to a person unless its in a bank. A car is your documented property. Stealing a running, open car is still stealing.

    [ link to this | view in thread ]

  10. identicon
    Stanley Jenson, 14 May 2005 @ 11:18pm

    Excellent way to catch the bad guys...

    Not only an excellent way to catch, but also to put fear into their thick heads, and the thick heads of their homies, and anyone else even remotely considering stealing a car. I wonder what these thieves will do when they are so scared that they pee their pants while even walking close to or even daring to look at a car ! Check out my blog folks, it talks about auto theft and predatory towing issues. Feel free to browse through old postings. Old is sometimes gold ! :) http://towingandautotheft.blogspot.com/

    [ link to this | view in thread ]

  11. identicon
    Stanley Jenson, 14 May 2005 @ 11:24pm

    Re: Poison gas?

    I always thought of equipping my car with the following: 1. Lojack 2. Security Alarm 3. Steering wheel club 4. Gas pedal locking club 5. A bulldog 6. Intentionally removing air from atleast one tire each night I leave the car parked. And then refilling air using one of those $20 pressure air pumps from walmart. 7. Intentionally removing some of the wires under the car's hood. And then rewiring each morning before starting the car to go to work. 8. Security alarm activated pepper spray. 9. Security alarm activated needles that will erect out from the driver seat ! Hitting the crook straight in his/her excretory organs ! Should be enough to make them pass out ! Anything I forgot, make sure you add ! :) Oh right, the poison gas ! How about storing bad smelling ammonia type gas that smells like coming from a horse's rear !

    [ link to this | view in thread ]


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