stolen bike!

[posthuman]

Fortunately, this is not up to the prosecutor.

RCW 9.94A.411
Evidentiary sufficiency. (Effective until July 1, 2007.)

(1) Decision not to prosecute.

STANDARD: A prosecuting attorney may decline to prosecute, even though technically sufficient evidence to prosecute exists, in situations where prosecution would serve no public purpose, would defeat the underlying purpose of the law in question or would result in decreased respect for the law.

GUIDELINE/COMMENTARY:

Examples

The following are examples of reasons not to prosecute which could satisfy the standard.


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(f) High Disproportionate Cost of Prosecution - It may be proper to decline to charge where the cost of locating or transporting, or the burden on, prosecution witnesses is highly disproportionate to the importance of prosecuting the offense in question. This reason should be limited to minor cases and should not be relied upon in serious cases.

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Crimes against property/other crimes will be filed if the admissible evidence is of such convincing force as to make it probable that a reasonable and objective fact-finder would convict after hearing all the admissible evidence and the most plausible defense that could be raised.

[trbig]

Crimes against property/other crimes will be filed if the admissible evidence is of such convincing force as to make it probable that a reasonable and objective fact-finder would convict after hearing all the admissible evidence and the most plausible defense that could be raised.

Sounds like if they had done their job and ran fingerprints...it would have made it pretty convincing to convict. Once again... it looks like the criminals have far more rights than I/we do. If the law isn't going to protect me, my family, and my property... I am going to protect me, my family, and my property. Was going to add more... this is ticking me off a bit... but will leave it at that. At least you got your bike back in good shape considering most (Including me) had already doomed it to parts on Ebay.

Tod

[Pat Kelly]

This is from someone getting the shaft from the system....

If they found the fingerprints of John Doe on the bike and the bike was found in the alley behind John Doe's apartment complex there's still no proof (other than circustantial) that John Doe stole the bike.
We all know he did but there's reasonable doubt.... "Yeah, I touched the bike. It's a cool bike. But I didn't steal it".

I'm at the dead-end with the guy that totalled our Suburban. There are witnesses that saw him hit our truck. PD took our truck as evidence (later returned). Someday we may get a check for $5,000 (damages we're claiming) and wonder what it was from. The guy won't go to trial for a couple of years and we submitted our damages for compensation with the DA.

I'm glad you got the bike back. This list will help get you back on the road. Great bunch of people here, all of you.