TruTV's "BaitCar"

reply to post by worldwatcher

I personally feel that our police waste too much resources going after trivial crimes and making them into bigger deals that they are. I'd love to see more regular patrolling of high crime areas, and bigger police presence in areas where they know there is a problem.

first these operations do take place in hi-crime areas

secondly - criminals are criminals - to put it bluntly , and a person who will jump in a bait car with out hesitation will most likley commit any number of opportunistic offences

the police cannot be everywhere at once or watch everyone - besides if a criminal with the brains to be left unsupervised spots a police officer while he is prepering to commit a crime - they will abandon the attempt

bait car simply gives the police a specific pin-point tartget to watch - its that simple

and once the perpetrator has attempted to steal the bait car and been arrested - they are not at liberty to commit further crimes against unprotected targets down the street

sometimes it really is that simple

bait car is not some majic that sucks law abiding citizens into criminality - it hoovers up lazy stupid criminals who are already predisposed to stealing cars

reply to post by ignorant_ape


Take it to a chop shop.

I've never stolen a car, don't ever plan to. However, if someone did, most people in my parts would know where to take it without anybody asking any questions. Maybe it is just a country boy thing, but everyone knows everyone out here.

reply to post by elouina


But you are wrong. They DO coerce them. They take a car, usually one such as a Cadillac Escalade in most cases, which costs upwards of $60,000, put valuables inside of it, most of which most people would be more careful about, leave the keys in the ignition, vehicle running, and in many cases, the drivers door wide open.

Tell me kind sir or madam, just how many times you've walked down the street to find a running Cadillac Escalade with gold bars in the seats and the drivers door open? My guess is ZERO times. Cause I sure haven't. Therefore, they are creating the circumstances for an unrealistic crime that in normal circumstance has close to zero chance of happening. They are creating criminals through entrapment.





I think that is what most people fail to realize in this situation. The show creates unrealistic scenarios that would never be presented to the normal human being in the way they do. As someone said, and as knowing a car thief in my time - you aren't a hardened car thief if you go around stealing cars with keys in the ignition. If someone is a car thief, they are going to take the car, locked, alarmed, and without any keys. If this show just parked a car, locked it and let it go, maybe I would be more sympathetic to the cause - but the situations they create are 100% synthetic - false - unrealistic.

Originally posted by HandyDandy

Originally posted by Malcher
I would have to see what the outcome of these "sting" operaitons are. Do the perpetrators get the same judgment as someone who breaks into a car?

It has been posted that they get LONGER sentences. Which equates to MORE money in their own pockets.

Which also equates to conspiracy to entrap IMO since those who are "baiting" are the ones recieving the money.

How can they get longer sentences? And by the logic of some in this thread if you leave your bicycle and go into a store come out and it is missing there was no crime committed?

Ya know...never ceases to amaze me how lenient people are of crime until the crime is perpetrated on themselves then they go ballistic.

Originally posted by Malcher
reply to post by Freezer

 

Here is what you said:

When you live in the getto, have poor schools, a family that can't even feed you, what do you expect..

That to me is the implication to expect people who are disadvantaged to resort to crime or do resort to crime instead of working honestly to better their situation.

Where are the high crime areas? In poor, disadvantaged neighborhoods.. Are you saying this isn't the case?

You can interpret it anyway you like, I never said "expect", it was implied that it is more "likely" which it is.

Originally posted by Malcher
Not to mention that you have no idea where this "bait" car was located.

Yea, I'm sure they put the baitcar in rich, hollywood type areas... Give me a break, pft..

Originally posted by Freezer

Originally posted by Malcher
Not to mention that you have no idea where this "bait" car was located.

Yea, I'm sure they put the baitcar in rich, hollywood type areas... Give me a break, pft..

edit on 5-1-2012 by Freezer because: (no reason given)

They probably do but that looked like a fairly average neighborhood to me.

Originally posted by Malcher
And by the logic of some in this thread if you leave your bicycle and go into a store come out and it is missing there was no crime committed?

Obviously, you have reading comprehension issues.

I never said that no crime was committed.

Just that if the police deliberately leave a bike out to be stolen, they have created the crime and used entrapment.

There IS a huge difference here that many of you people are ignoring.

I usually ride my bike to work and I find about 1 wallet per year.

A couple of years ago I found a plastic wallet with no id and $50 bucks outside a retirement community.

I turned it into the police. They asked if I really wanted to turn it in because there was no id. I said that it was near the retirement place and I thought that some old person lost it.

The police office called me later that day and said that a little old lady came in and claimed the wallet. Her son had just sent her $50 and she had just cashed the check right before she lost her wallet.

Legal or not, when you find something that isn't yours, you should turn it in.

Originally posted by HandyDandy

Originally posted by Malcher
And by the logic of some in this thread if you leave your bicycle and go into a store come out and it is missing there was no crime committed?

Obviously, you have reading comprehension issues.

I never said that no crime was committed.

Just that if the police deliberately leave a bike out to be stolen, they have created the crime and used entrapment.

There IS a huge difference here that many of you people are ignoring.

So you agree a crime was committed. How do police leave a bike out to be stolen and leaving a bike unattended, TO YOU, is creating a crime?

How about leaving a human unattended and the human is abducted is that "creating a crime?"

If you were standing on a corner with a new iPod or some other device and it gets stolen, by your logic you created the crime. Think about what you are saying.

reply to post by Puck 22


I'm gonna put a sign on my back that says "kick me" and if you do
i'm going to sue your arse
How's THAT for an analogy ?

You could have been kicking an old man or an ederly woman,
maybe you've been beating you gf, your mom or a baby ok?
ok.
I'll probably save someone's life.

Originally posted by Malcher
If you were standing on a corner with a new iPod or some other device and it gets stolen, by your logic you created the crime. Think about what you are saying.

The difference would be I am in direct control of the ipod. Unlike the police leaving a car with it's keys in the ignition and doors open all the while hoping that someone comes along and steals it. THAT is creating crime. Not the former.

How can this concept get by so many people?

The morale of the story end of the day, is the simple fact.
"if it don't belong to you, don't take it"

I've love to live in a world were i could leave my laptop at a table in say Mc Donalds, why i go to the counter, without fear of some little toerag, looking to steal it.

Its not about written laws, its about decent conduct as a human, i educated myself, and worked hard to buy said laptop/car, just because some kid got a ruff deal in life, doesn't give him the right to take my property.



Some of you sympathizers for the thief's who STEAL cars in this show baitcar, are the sort, that think a cup of tea and a good chat will sort these poor thief's out, well i've got news for you, it won't, like its been said here many times already, a thief a thief no matter what environment they are in.

reply to post by TheMaverick


So true.

The other day i left my bike by an air pump and walked about 30 feet to the store in those few minutes someone in an SUV pulled up and was about to steal my bike. I got out just in time for him to speed away, before he got a chance to steal my bike.

According to some here i "enticed" or "entrapped" the thief to steal my bike.

Um, if there is a sign that says don't do something, and a person does it, who is at fault, the people putting up the sign, or the person ignoring the sign?

Having been in those cities that these programs are filmed, and funny, along with this show being on the air, there seems to be signs that state that they are running a bait car operation and strange how every one there still does the deed, knowning that this may be a bait car. Kind of like the other TV program: To Catch a Predator, and how when asked do they watch the show, the person says yes they have seen it, yet go through and still comitt the crime.

Bottom line is if it is not yours, don't touch it, and if the signs say that they are running this kind of sting, going through and doing the crime, just maybe that person needs to be caught and go to jail for a bit. Try watching the following service anouncement:
www.youtube.com...

Entrapment by police is illegal here in my country. Should be the same everywhere. No respect for this mafia gang.

Originally posted by Wrabbit2000
Wow... I'm staggered by this thread and the fact it even exists. Are some people *SO* anti-cop that even worthless car thieves become the object of pity and a sense of shared violation at the hands of law enforcement???

Perhaps some folks need to own a car and have it stolen...never to be seen again...and only carrying liability insurance as it goes. Perhaps...and I'm only just guessing here as this thread shows how far the apologists can go....perhaps though, that will demonstrate WHY Police actually exist and WHY this bait technique is sheer genius and should go on for many new areas where the tactic is likely to produce results.

Criminals are parasites on society. Nothing more..and no other way to see it. Anything the Police do to scrub those parasites off the body of society is a good thing in my book and they need to do more of it.

Absolutely a perfect post, I was thinking this running down the posts here and It did not take long to find some common sense from someone who speaks for the victims not the thief's.
Regards, Iwinder
Star for that post sir/madam

reply to post by sdcigarpig


There's a hudge diffeence betweeen someone who does somethig illegal, and the police making sure that someon's gonna do that. Your laws are so massively fracked up overseas concerning police.. in a world that makes sense, those cops should be tried for incitement of theft.

If I leave my wallet on the sidewalk in an heavily patrolling police zone with a 100$ note slipping our of it ... A cop passes by and pick it up. Should I now sue the cop for theft ? BS.

Entrapment is vicious and unjust.

What's next ? Leave a joint somewhere evident. And bust afterwards the one who smokes it ???

reply to post by daniel5383



Parking a escalade in a certain neighborhood with the keys on the roof isn't much different from placing a 50 dollar bill on the street and waiting for someone to pick it up so that you can arrest them for theft in my mind.

I think the fact that it is placed in poverty stricken neighborhood is the worst offense here.Chances here are huge that someone that would not normaly go through the trouble of jacking a car would do so in this situation.Now if they would park this car in rich neighborhood and someone would still steal it the chances of them catching a actual regular car thief increase astronomicly.


It would still be fundamentaly flawed but at least it would be closer to catching a actual criminal that deserves a sentence.

Why stop here? Let's put huge crack rocks in a field next to a crack house.

This is the very definition of 'entrapment.'

What if a teen with a clean record happened upon this car, sees the door open and keys and now has a felony record because of the temptation of a joy ride.

Life over.

It seems the idea these days is that its all good as long as its 'entertaining.'

Where does it end?

Their not catching real car thieves just kids going on a joyride. If they where really trying to catch car thieves you would think they would let them drive to their destination to find out if their is a nearby chop shop to shut down..... Not shut the car down two blocks later just to ask the obvious question "why did you do it" ...

All I have to say is... wow. So from what I gather on this post is, the individual committing the crime is the victim. So by this logic, anyone who leaves their property available to be compromised is actually the criminal in that scenario.

I had a friend who was quite stupid one day and left his car running while he went into a convince store to grab a quick drink. Now, he even admits that was a stupid thing to do as his car was taken. Now the question is should he be jailed for presenting such an opportunity for his property to be taken? And since he left his car running and left it, can the thief now claim ownership? After all, by the reasoning of half these posts, just presenting an opportunity to steal is the crime and the thief should be the one being defended.

Now to those who throw out the word 'entrapment'. Please look up the definition of entrapment. The individuals who take the cars are doing it of their own volition. They are not asked, bribed, coerced or intimidated into taking the car. In fact, there are times that the bait car fails as people will hold the keys and even call local law enforcement informing them about the abandoned car. Would that make the 'Good Samaritan' the criminal?

Wait, now I am confused. The person who steals the car should be defended, so that means the one who doesn't steal the car should be villianized?