Why Police Fail To Take Any Action

Local Police Failed To Take Action Every Time Some Upstanding local merchant stole $200 Newspaper machines of unpopular newspaper off public sidewalk in front of their business and disposed of it. Even repeatedly and when police work uncovered and KNEW who.

No matter how obvious or what they uncovered It would have been "politically infeasible" for local police to take any action, against "SUBSTANTIAL" local merchant, in response to protection of unpopular publication distribution.

The newspaper right to distribute made worthless by local police lack of backbone every time. Paper dispenser owner property right protection was reduced to ZERO.

Sioux Falls Police...no exception, acted true to form.

(In over 50 such incidents in 32 years, we can recall or find not one where any action was ever taken against a local merchant taking and disposing of our machines. (including a machine 7 years ago involving a Walmart in another state)

No matter how obvious, they would always say, we really can not do anything unless you can personally "prove" who disposed of the machine. Often would not even take a police theft report.

They would say "you will have to catch them with the machine or we can not do anything." Even uncovering employees knowing of action meant nothing.

Example:  One case where we had lost several machines, we staked out for days and finally observed the latest machine taken off the sidewalk and was taken inside their back room.

We called police and said "we have eye witness evidence of who took it and where machine was taken." Police went in and saw the machine and after 45 minute discussion came out and said, "we really can not do anything. He did not "steal" it, he just took it inside for safe keeping, and you can pick up your machine.

The local "substantial" merchant becomes arrogant. He knows from experience he is practically immune from any police concerns over his actions involving hundreds of dollars no matter how questionable, and he knows locally he has to answer to "nobody", he swings a lot of local "political muscle".

Meantime the local nicotine addict takes a package of cigarettes and goes to jail for six months. They had no choice...they have to "follow the law" remember.  

We Catch third theft in time, go

What Sioux Falls Police Knew About This Latest (Third) Newsrack Theft Incident go here

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