Slog
News & ArtsTuesday, March 16, 2010
Crime And the Runner Up for the Darwin Award Goes To...
Posted by Dominic Holden on Tue, Mar 16, 2010 at 7:12 AM
Slog tipper Kim directs your attention to this news item, filed by Seattlepi.com reporter Casey McNerthey, in which a man attempts to prevent would-be thieves from stealing his car:
"When questioned about the incident, (the man) stated that he had set a booby trap as an anti-theft device by placing his loaded .38 caliber Smith and Wesson revolver with the hammer in the cocked position under his steering wheel," Gang Unit Detective Rob Thomas wrote in a police document."When he returned to his vehicle after jogging in the park he attempted to disarm his booby trap, accidentally set off the gun and shot himself in the leg."
The man has been convicted of five felonies, McNerthey reports, and is prohibited from possessing a gun.
5
The first thing I actually wondered was, what laws govern booby traps in Washington?
If I own a house, can I construct a snake pit?
An oubliette to drop burglers into?
Poison darts from the walls? Electrified floors? A self-sealing house that turns itself into a panic room if someone breaks in until the police arrive?
If I own a house, can I construct a snake pit?
An oubliette to drop burglers into?
Poison darts from the walls? Electrified floors? A self-sealing house that turns itself into a panic room if someone breaks in until the police arrive?
6
@5 IANAL but I don't think it is legal to setup booby traps if you intend to use them to hurt a robber. Remember if someone mugs you on the street you can't just blast them on the spot unless they were threatening you. Robbery isn't enough to just ice somebody on the spot.
7
Sorry there Joe, no booby traps for you.
'Spring Gun' laws, designed to prevent exactly the sort of thing that happened here, are on the books in all states. The theory is that you can't rig a device to do something that you legally couldn't do yourself. So since you can't legally kill, or even hurt someone just for their being on your property, you can't rig a gun to protect that vacant property.
This idiot shot himself, but historically there are many cases of 1) "Dern' kids always vandalizing ma farm!" 2) "Got it! I'll rig this shotgun to cover the door of my vacant farmhouse! That'll fix em." 3) Dern kid loses life/limb. 4) "Whaddya mean I'm being charged with attempted murder?".
So yeah, that snake pit? That's what we call a property hazard, that you as the owner would be liable for when little Jimmy falls in. Especially if it's visible from the outside and neighborhood kids know about it. Then it's also an attractive nuisance. Oubliette for burglars? Unlawful imprisonment. Poison darts? Murder/Attempted Murder/3rd Degree Cliche. Panic Room for you? Perfectly fine, perfectly legal (assuming it's up to code). Panic room to trap burglars? Unlawful imprisonment again. Electrified floors are probably ok if they are clearly marked and guests are properly warned... Think about, for example, an electric fence. Legal, but there should be signs.
Otherwise it's that whole 'murder' thing again.
'Spring Gun' laws, designed to prevent exactly the sort of thing that happened here, are on the books in all states. The theory is that you can't rig a device to do something that you legally couldn't do yourself. So since you can't legally kill, or even hurt someone just for their being on your property, you can't rig a gun to protect that vacant property.
This idiot shot himself, but historically there are many cases of 1) "Dern' kids always vandalizing ma farm!" 2) "Got it! I'll rig this shotgun to cover the door of my vacant farmhouse! That'll fix em." 3) Dern kid loses life/limb. 4) "Whaddya mean I'm being charged with attempted murder?".
So yeah, that snake pit? That's what we call a property hazard, that you as the owner would be liable for when little Jimmy falls in. Especially if it's visible from the outside and neighborhood kids know about it. Then it's also an attractive nuisance. Oubliette for burglars? Unlawful imprisonment. Poison darts? Murder/Attempted Murder/3rd Degree Cliche. Panic Room for you? Perfectly fine, perfectly legal (assuming it's up to code). Panic room to trap burglars? Unlawful imprisonment again. Electrified floors are probably ok if they are clearly marked and guests are properly warned... Think about, for example, an electric fence. Legal, but there should be signs.
Otherwise it's that whole 'murder' thing again.
8
@7 Clearly the solution is big MASSIVE SIGNS on my property line warning of IMMINENT ELECTROMAGNETIC DOOM, so that I can mount metal plates over every square inch of my house and electrify the holy hell out of them.
But then I'll be cleaning up a lot of dead birds...
But then I'll be cleaning up a lot of dead birds...
9
Well, yes. I suppose you could put giant Tesla coils all around your house, constantly shooting out 15' lightning bolts. But then you're really entering into attractive nuisance land. Kids love a good show after all.
Not to mention actual nuisance, when your neighbors tire of the noise, constant smell of ozone and charred bird, and intermittent brown-outs.
Not to mention actual nuisance, when your neighbors tire of the noise, constant smell of ozone and charred bird, and intermittent brown-outs.
11
I hate the "Darwin Awards". Vulgar evolutionism at its worst. At least Creationists aren't such arrogant assholes.
14
@13
"PC" is just a copout used by people who don't have a valid argument.
The so-called "Darwin Awards" are bullshit that totally distort how selection works, and drags Charles Darwin's good name down in the mud with creepy eugenicists and Ayn Rand kooks.
"PC" is just a copout used by people who don't have a valid argument.
The so-called "Darwin Awards" are bullshit that totally distort how selection works, and drags Charles Darwin's good name down in the mud with creepy eugenicists and Ayn Rand kooks.
Advertisement
Most Commented on Slog
-
Hating People Doesn't Make Them Thinner by Jen Graves
-
Los Angeles Gay Bar Bans Bachelorette Parties Until Marriage Equality Is Attained by David Schmader
-
Fill in the Blank by Grant Brissey
-
This Reminds Me of the Great Calculator Scare of the Late '70s/Early '80s by David Schmader
-
Idiot Tries to Defend Bigoted Anti-Gay-Marriage Preacher on Anderson Cooper by Paul Constant
-
Six Moms with Too Much Time on Their Hands and a Shitty Website Decide to Fight Gay Superheroes by Paul Constant
-
Why Mayor McGinn's Wife Canceled Her Family's Seattle Times Subscription by Eli Sanders
-
What the Hell Is Wrong With Seattle's Pride Parade? by Dominic Holden
-
The Saturday Morning News by Unpaid Intern
-
NYC Man Ticketed for Not Riding in the Bike Lane by Jonathan Golob
RSS
Facebook
Twitter
Comments (14) RSS