Crime Watch reader reports: Backyard theft; break-in try

| Crime | Safety | West Seattle news

From two people who want you to know what happened to them – read on:

First, this just arrived in the WSB inbox:

I just wanted to inform readers of something strange that just happened. I live near 16th Ave SW and Trenton. I got a knock at the door about 3:30, but didn’t answer it because I don’t answer the door when I’m home alone for safety reasons. So, I just ignored it. A minute later a big beater truck backed into my yard and a guy hopped out and took a washer/dryer that was sitting in our yard. We were wanting to get rid of it anyways, however, I’m concerned about someone coming onto our property without permission. He was a tall, African-American man. I wasn’t able to get the license plate number.

We wrote back for a few more details – the victim didn’t get the make of the truck but says it was light blue.

This report came in last Friday but we lost it till the sender kindly wrote in to remind us:

We are remodeling a home in the 48th & Spokane area. Our contractors are there all during the day but sometime between 5pm Wed evening and 8am Thursday morning someone tried to break into the home through the back basement door. They were trying to pry the door open and did substantial cosmetic damage but the deadlock held, thank goodness. Just thought the neighborhood should know and being new to that part of West Seattle, we hope it’s not a common occurence. Maybe someone trying to get in to get the tools?

If you see this before 7 pm Tuesday – one more pitch, the West Seattle Community Safety Partnership Meeting is the place to be tonight.

Denise May 20, 2008 (5:55 pm)

I live 4700 block of 25th ave SW and last night (5-19) at about 10:40 pm there was a knock on the door. I turned on the porch light and then opened the shade to see who was at the door. A younger African American man turned and ran off my porch. Maybe he was looking for a different house or he was checking to see if anyone was home. Either way it made me nervous.

gw May 20, 2008 (7:02 pm)

I live on 10th and Trenton and in the last 8 months, I have had two practically worthless items stolen from the alley behind my house- a broken pressure washer and a rusty metal cabinet. I hear that even ferrous scrap metal prices are at an all time high. and West Seattle Recycling is just down the street. Coincidence?

Flavian May 21, 2008 (10:30 am)

How can scrap left in an alley or yard be considered stolen? The fellow with the truck did a favor for both the junk owners and neighbors.

gw May 21, 2008 (7:19 pm)

Flavian, do us a favor and post your address for us. Next time a WSB reader needs something, we’ll swing by your yard and do your neighbors a flavor. Oops I meant favor.

Flavian May 22, 2008 (1:06 pm)

Sorry gw, my yards are tidy and are devoid of eyesores and child hazards. This is one of many reasons why I am on great terms with my neighbors.

gw May 22, 2008 (6:42 pm)

Don’t contradict yourself, Flavian. According to your argument above, beauty (and ownership for that matter) are not up to the property owner to determine. That’s for the neighbors, and the neighborhood thieves to judge. It’s obvious that your picture perfect yard keeps you on great terms with your neighbors, because it certainly isn’t your ability to withhold judgment upon others.

Flavian May 23, 2008 (1:54 am)

Contradiction? Not sure what you mean, gw. My first post was a question for people who leave scrap or junk for anyone to take. I’m not sure how you read to imply that I am such a person. Depending on the condition of the item, I hire people or ask a charity to haul away bulky things I don’t need anymore. Neat, tidy, and safe are community standards of property and are enforced by municipal code or homeowner rules. Your “…broken pressure washer and a rusty metal cabinet” by your alley, in plain view, was possibly unsafe for children and certainly provided the opportunity for someone to take it away (not all junk haulers are thieves, many pick up items left for them, so perhaps this was an honest error). It isn’t my intuition, common sense, or analytical abilities, i.e. judgment, that makes me get along with my neighbors, it’s my ability to cooperate within my community to keep up our neighborhood.

Highland Park resident May 23, 2008 (11:14 am)

No less than the Supreme Court of the USA has ruled that citizens’ right of privacy does not extend to their trash, i.e. garbage cannot be “stolen”. Trash is set out in the expectation that a third party (e.g. the garbage collectors) will come by and collect it. If items are set by the alley in an area where trash waiting for collection is normally put, it is not “stealing” if a person makes off with them (even if it is not the party you intended to take them). Ownership of these items is deemed relinquished when they are set out. If someone has to trespass on private property to obtain the items…that’s a different story. I work for a local law enforcement agency and have to explain this concept to folks on a regular basis when they call in to report that their garbage/trash has been “stolen.”

gw May 26, 2008 (12:17 pm)

Highland park neighbor- Thanks for confirming that my belongings were stolen. Half of my alley line is fenced (coincidentally, I set my garbage outside of that fenced portion) these items were behind the fence “line”, 10 feet away IN my driveway. Good, now I know that I can legally dump the 5 computer monitors my neighbors have left in the alley for the last two years. So is the supreme court saying anyone is free to steal my neighbors car because they park next to their garbage cans in the alley? Garbage cans themselves and municipal recycling bins are free for the taking as well? where does it end? This ruling is not without careful interpretation.
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Flavian- “Iâ€™m not sure how you read to imply that I am such a person.” Man, you are the one doing the judging. How did you read that I am white trash because two things sat outside my garage that didn’t need to be there? It only takes one minute to get something stolen.

The contradiction: according to you, the condition if my yard is a matter of your blind judgment, my neighbors opinion and a thief’s opinion- every one but me, the owner. yet you lay claim to the perfection of you own yard. See the double standard here?
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Originally, I wasn’t trying to write a doctoral thesis on the precise location and condition of my “child endangering property value lowering trash”, I was simply trying to make a quick comment that two items of value to me (yes, scrap value) were stolen FROM MY PRIVATE PROPERTY before I could haul them to the recycler since I cannot afford to hire people to do my dirty work for me. Excuse me for implying that they were IN the alley. Passing a fence line to walk 5′ up someones driveway is TRESSPASSING AND THEFT. Flavian, you don’t know me, you don’t know what my yard looks like, you don’t know what my neighbor’s yards look like. You assume that because i set something out just long enough to get it stolen makes my yard a menace to society. For the record, my front yard is clean and nicely landscaped, but no one, including the garbage man, cares what my back yard looks like from the alley. Not everyone can afford the time or money to have a 100% perfect yard like you, but I do have pride in my property. And no, my yard is not perfect, but that doesn’t give you the right to encourage theft. Go judge someone else.

Sorry, comment time is over.