Thieving from city centre fountain -Couldn't believe my eyes

[Nagel]

If people want to give their money to a charity then throwing it into a fountain seems a stupid way to do it.

[Cyclone]

No I don't. I was always taught that if you forget to lock your bicycle it is your own fault it is gone.

 

So it's always the victims fault in your world.

 

---------- Post added 26-07-2016 at 07:39 ----------

 

Like I said cyclone, why don't you just donate by sending a cheque or put it in a proper box or send text to donate number.

You are getting all worked up and the solution is so simple.

 

I agree with you that theft or murder are not wanted but when you put money openly in a public place and get upset when it is gone I can only recommend you take a coarse on how to use money safely.

 

You claimed it wasn't illegal because there wasn't a sign saying it was.

Have you changed your mind?

 

---------- Post added 26-07-2016 at 07:41 ----------

 

Regardless of our distaste of the taking of these coins, the legality of the situation is far from as simple as people would like to believe.

Theft by finding is an offense but there are plenty of defenses that preclude prosecution

The impossibility of identifying an owner by reasonable means is one example.

A belief that you were allowed to take the item is another.

 

There are many reports of police investigating and questioning, but I have yet to find a case reaching court or a conviction.

 

As more of these occurrences arise, the need for clear policies and signs becomes more essential.

 

Rome actually had to create their version of a bye-law before they could start to prosecute the takers of coins from the Trevi Fountain.

 

For it to be "theft by finding" and not just theft, the coins would have to be lost or abandoned, they are neither. They're in a known location where they will be retrieved for charity.

You might as well claim that it's theft by finding if you sneak someones mobile phone off the table in front of them.

Edited July 26, 2016 by Cyclone

[euroout23]

Is there a sign inviting people to throw money in and if they do that it is for charity????

[cgksheff]

The fountains are not charity collection receptacles.

They are decorative fountains.

They are cleaned of debris from time to time by council workers.

When coins are recovered from the debris by council workers, they are donated to charities.

 

In the absence of any clear policy or signage, you will struggle to make any charge stick against anyone helping themselves. It is not illegal.

[Cyclone]

It's illegal to take a coin off the street and keep it... It's no less illegal if you take it from a fountain.

 

What makes something a legal "charity collection receptacle"?

[cgksheff]

It's illegal to take a coin off the street and keep it...

 

It may be illegal depending on the circumstances.

It is not always illegal.

 

In the current circumstances it is not always illegal to take coins from the Barkers Pool fountain.

[dutch]

It's illegal to take a coin off the street and keep it... It's no less illegal if you take it from a fountain.

 

What makes something a legal "charity collection receptacle"?

 

Yes.

When I shop at waitrose they often give a plastic token representing an amount to be given to charity. At the exit there are few boxes with clear descriptions what these charities are and you put the token in the box you choose then waitrose pays the donation to them.

 

When I am at the fountain I don't have a clue what that money is for, could be donated to scrap metal for all I know.

 

---------- Post added 26-07-2016 at 10:50 ----------

 

So it's always the victims fault in your world

 

Only when the owner(victim) was negligent in locking up, if the thief breaks the lock you have tried to prevent the problem.

 

Put a net over the fountains, only then when they cut the net call them thieves.

Edited July 26, 2016 by dutch

[sheffandy]

They've not existed for quite some time now.

 

Oops, Shows how often I go down town!

[Cyclone]

Yes.

When I shop at waitrose they often give a plastic token representing an amount to be given to charity. At the exit there are few boxes with clear descriptions what these charities are and you put the token in the box you choose then waitrose pays the donation to them.

 

When I am at the fountain I don't have a clue what that money is for, could be donated to scrap metal for all I know.

 

---------- Post added 26-07-2016 at 10:50 ----------

 

I know what you DO know when you look at the money in the fountain. It isn't yours. And taking things that aren't yours is theft.

 

Only when the owner(victim) was negligent in locking up, if the thief breaks the lock you have tried to prevent the problem.

 

Put a net over the fountains, only then when they cut the net call them thieves.

 

You're still trying to justify victim blaming. As if an unsecured item somehow forces a thief to steal it. Astounding.

 

---------- Post added 27-07-2016 at 13:33 ----------

 

It may be illegal depending on the circumstances.

It is not always illegal.

 

In the current circumstances it is not always illegal to take coins from the Barkers Pool fountain.

 

Not true at all. It's illegal to take a coin from the floor and make no effort to find the original owner (the minimum of which would be to inform the police that you have found some lost property).

[dutch]

The fountain money is not lost.

 

Go and put your bike and some money openly in town and tell the insurance company you intentionally didn't lock it. They will tell you we don't live in cloud cuckoo land.