News Grand Theft Auto—Seattle
posted by on January 17 at 15:04 PM
I’m a big fan of dismissing this city’s violent crime alarmists, but I have to say, the amount of auto theft here is no joke. Seattle has the sixth highest rate for auto theft of U.S. cities — and this particular offense continues to rise despite drops in every other category of crime. When I asked Dan Satterberg, the prosecutor’s office chief of staff, about the problem he said flimsy penalties have a lot to do with it. In Washington State, your first offense for swiping a Honda will stick you in jail for at most 60 days. Chronic thieves won’t spend time in prison until their seventh offense.
I’m sure Satterberg is partially right. But I’m also sure other states have lenient laws. What he can’t explain—at least not to a reporter—is the underlying reason for Seattle’s popularity among car thieves. What I’ve heard from police and the odd FBI type I’ve managed to corner is that Asian (Vietnamese) gangs do much, though by no means all, of the actual acquiring of hot cars, while other Northwest mafioso, likely Russians, have mastered the fine art of moving the product. Replacing VIN numbers can be a highly nuanced process.
The prosecutor’s office is currently pimping a bill in Olympia (HB 1001) that would create higher penalties for auto theft. Maybe it deserves a look — but it doesn’t seem like much will change until we know a little more about those underlying explanations.
It seems to me that auto manufacturers could reduce the problem signficantly and nationwide by implementing universal VIN etching. It's inexpensive, and effective enough that you can receive a discount from most insurance companies on your comprehensive coverage (the coverage that pays for a stolen car).
It would be a lot cheaper than even those 60 days in jail.
I remember a local news story on a Washington town that had a real problem with car theft and the reason was the penalty. What the figured out was that by trying them as misdemeanors instead of felonies they were able to impose longer sentences. I wish I could remember the details.
That's what happens when you abandon your car in the snow.
It is my understanding that WA law makes it particularly difficult to prosecute auto theft cases; it's difficult to provide the proof the law currently demands, and police seldom bother to investigate such crimes as a result, or they charge the culprits with lesser crimes like "possession of stolen property". Making the sentences stricter on auto theft won't really fix that.
Dang, I was hoping they were announcing GTA: Emerald City ... for the Wii ... nevermind.
Better VIN etching wouldn't do jack. Our car was stolen by a Korean meth head (we found several CDRs of music with handwritten Korean lettering on them inside when we recovered it, along with ten thousand cigarette butts, stubbed out on the upholstery). They didn't want the car; they wanted the body panels, all of them from the front half of the car. A total writeoff.
Little bastard stole probably 250 cars in his prolific career; the cops drove him to our house on a tour of his crime scenes. It was a long tour. He apologized to my wife, scaring her shitless in the process.
They could make car theft punishable by death and it wouldn't make a difference in the number of car thefts in the Seattle area. I have had my vehicle attempted to be stolen 3 different times, once successfully, have filed a police report for each attempt. The only thing that happened was that they found the vehicle abandoned 2 weeks later and impounded it despite the fact that the police report filed requested to be contacted so that I could just pick up the vehicle rather than pay $300-$500 for a van worth $1500-$2000.
When they recovered the van, they didn't even bother to search the van for evidence of who might have stolen it. So my thought is that if the police actually pursued car thieves with the same ferocity that they go after the strip clubs, the theft rate would drop like a stone.
I don't generally think that a harsh punishment will always deter crime, since naturally no one is planning on getting caught. In the case of auto thefts however... Auto thieves tend to be very profilic, and removing a few from the streets for longer sentences does have a dramatic impact auto theft numbers.
Local PBS recently did a report on Modesto, CA, who was the leader in car thefts in the past. Of course this rose with the proliferation of meth in the 80s and 90s, but once thieves were experienced - at least in the case of the people the interviewed - they we stealing 2 or 3 cars a day.
Also, and in my opinion only, I think average folks drive nicer, more expensive cars today than they did 10 or 20 years ago. As cars have become more disposable while being considerable more expensive to keep on the road, gone are the days of the beater hand-me-down station wagons and Honda Civics. This must play a part in the marketplace for theft.
my car was stolen last may. the cops recovered it, not all that far from my apartment. i was out of town and missed the whole thing.
it was clearly kids that took it. the interior was a disaster but no real body damage. cops told me that joy riding is still a popular activity, even in the city. and then they told me i was basically asking for it by having a honda.
fucking jerks.
Bingo. Police should focus on crimes against people first, property crime second, and then if there is any time left over, maybe look into victimless crimes that involve consenting adults.
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