To steal another person's property

[u/Interesting_Cow5152]

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[u/stevegannonhandmade]

Guaranteed I would forget I did that after only like 5 minutes; then I'd cut my own fingers off!

[u/yomommasofat- → u/stevegannonhandmade]

Me too. I blame the marijuana.

[u/MagictheCollecting → u/yomommasofat-]

Am I you guys? Are you guys me?

[u/AutoThorne → u/MagictheCollecting]

I'm a raider from Fallout, and I gotta admit that we all hate this one trick.

[u/psychrolut → u/MagictheCollecting]

[u/Undertalelover- → u/psychrolut]

Why does Bart look like he has black lipstick? That's funny

[u/psychrolut → u/Undertalelover-]

[u/multiarmform → u/psychrolut]

why does this look like an addams family knockoff

[u/psychrolut → u/multiarmform]

Join the black parade honey

[u/zombie_overlord → u/psychrolut]

You know, that album has been in my regular rotation for so many years, and I've never watched the music vid until now.

[u/Express-Ad1258 → u/MagictheCollecting]

Are you us?

[u/Siupak240 → u/Express-Ad1258]

"We are the one"

[u/Comprehensive_Ad433 → u/Siupak240]

We are Groot

[u/ForRielle → u/MagictheCollecting]

vesuvan doppelganger

[u/LCDRtomdodge → u/MagictheCollecting]

As you are me
And we are all together

[u/throwRA-nonSeq → u/yomommasofat-]

No ones ever gonna believe marijuana cut up your fingers. Cmon man.

[u/wh4tth3huh → u/stevegannonhandmade]

Which is more or less the reason booby-trapping shit is illegal in most of the civilized world.

[u/fishsticks40 → u/wh4tth3huh]

Or because there's are plenty of legitimate reasons to move a cooler. 

Someone's gonna get sued

[u/Possibly_a_Firetruck → u/fishsticks40]

Name one legitimate reason for picking up a cooler that isn't yours from a boat that isn't yours that's sitting on a trailer that isn't yours which is parked on property that also most likely isn't yours.

[u/Leows → u/Possibly_a_Firetruck]

First, name any number of accidents you can think of. Fires? Explosions? Sinking?

Now, imagine rescuers, firefighters, family members, friends, or whoever has to move these things around trying to help have their hands lacerated.

[u/riccomuiz → u/Leows]

Accidents going for the first thing in sight that would have a first aid kit or emergency items.

[u/Jaques_Naurice → u/riccomuiz]

So my wife got hit by the boom while sailing. As our boat is not that big, I had to move a cooler and a 7yr old out of the way to get to her. I assume all your boats are cooler free or you store them below deck.

[u/Mr_Industrial → u/riccomuiz]

If Im panicking, I might think theres first aid stuff in a cooler. I once watched someone headbutt the glass window to an unlocked pull open door of a fire extinguisher holding box. Yes, he got glass in his face. People get stupid in emergencies. Do we really want to make the problem worse by making your own little SAW trap?

[u/GovernmentEvening815 → u/Possibly_a_Firetruck]

Doesn’t matter, booby trapping anything in an attempt to injure or maim a thief, your dog, your neighbor, your best friend bill, the mailman, etc.. is a crime.

https://theprepared.com/blog/booby-trap-laws/

The tried and true reason that it wraps around to is that IF there is ever an emergency, people who are trying to help (first responders, bystanders, children and the like) can get severely injured.

Note: while most states don’t have a specific law addressing this, it falls under “liability for injury” laws most of the time.

[u/ForsakenMoon13 → u/Possibly_a_Firetruck]

Or, you know, a friend or relative gets asked to grab it for any reason, and the person that booby trapped it forgets to tell them.

You know, an example of the actual point the previous commenter was making.

[u/Ohshitwadddup → u/ForsakenMoon13]

That's why you make booby trapping a family event. Even little Bort gets to try!

[u/shpongleyes → u/Possibly_a_Firetruck]

That doesn't even matter. Let's say there were no razors on the cooler, and somebody did steal it. What would be the proper punishment for that? I'm not a judge or lawyer, but the punishment would probably be a fine, community service, and maybe some jail time. The punishment does NOT include severe physical damage to the suspect's hands.

By gluing razors to the cooler, you've extrajudicially given cruel and unusual punishment for the crime at hand.

Here's a video about a particular case and why the court ruled against the homeowners who set up a spring-loaded shotgun as a booby trap.

[u/zaforocks → u/shpongleyes]

How much paint thinner do you need to drink to make "spring loaded shotgun" a good idea?

[u/shpongleyes → u/zaforocks]

Iirc, the case involved an old couple that inherited a house that they didn't have time to visit/maintain, and were only ever there a handful of days out of the year. Locals caught on, and would regularly rob the house since nobody was ever there. So in one of the rooms, they set up a shotgun aimed at the doorway, with a string attaching the door to the trigger.

A burglar triggered the trap, and was hit in the leg, causing him permanent damage. So after he served his time for the crimes he committed, and still suffered chronic pain from the injury, he sued the homeowners. He already paid his debt to society with the jail time, yet he was still being punished for the crime for the rest of his life.

[u/chowderbags → u/shpongleyes]

It wasn't even that the couple was there a few days of the year. It was literally boarded up and had been vacant for a decade, with high weeds covering the house. The guys that triggered the trap thought the farmhouse was abandoned.

And for some reason, the owners thought this boarded up, dilapidated, weed covered old farmhouse that they didn't spend time in, was somehow important enough to defend with deadly force. And they didn't even express any remorse after. On the contrary, they remarked "There's one thing I'd do different, though: I'd have aimed that gun a few feet higher.". Some real sociopath shit.

[u/Theshag0 → u/zaforocks]

Its like, the classic example because it is so easy to do. In 1882 someone patented it for a mousetrap (I'm not super well versed in boobytraps, but I googled it and this is the first thing that came up). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun-powered_mousetrap

[u/Turksarama → u/Possibly_a_Firetruck]

You are a 10 year old child visiting a relative. Should you have been playing on the boat? Probably not. Is having your fingers cut off a reasonable punishment? Fuck no.

[u/Puzzleheaded-Ear858w → u/Possibly_a_Firetruck]

Even if there's not, look at it this way:

Let's say you catch someone carting away your cooler.

Are you allowed to chase them down, knock the cooler out of their hands, and take out a razor and slice their hands up as punishment?

No.

It makes no difference if you set it up to happen automatically, or if you chase them down and do it yourself; it's the same end.

[u/GenericFatGuy → u/Puzzleheaded-Ear858w]

Exactly. We're supposed to be living in a world that's more civilized than to cut someone's fingers off for petty theft.

[u/NewScientist2725 → u/Puzzleheaded-Ear858w]

Are you allowed to chase them down, knock the cooler out of their hands, and take out a razor and slice their hands up as punishment?

You will find no shortage of people who unironically believe that this is okay....

[u/Forgotten_Son → u/Possibly_a_Firetruck]

He's chatting to his next door neighbour, having just affixed the razor blades to the coolers and, mid conversation, takes ill and falls unconcious. The neighbour is first aid trained, so he hops up on the boat and, in order to create room to perform CPR, moves a cooler out of the way. His hands are then cut open by razor blades.

[u/whatisitcousin → u/fishsticks40]

But he glued them there for art and was too lazy to remove them

[u/USMCLee → u/wh4tth3huh]

I get Louisiana vibes from that image. It is up to personal opinion if Louisiana qualifies as 'civilized'

[u/j-manz → u/wh4tth3huh]

While raking the perp with gunfire from a military weapon? Proceed!

[u/SomeDudeist → u/j-manz]

At least you can distinguish between criminals and regular people or children that way. A booby trap won't care who triggered it.

[u/j-manz → u/SomeDudeist]

Yes I know. Regular people and children are never victims of gun violence.

[u/Crazy-Fig2972 → u/j-manz]

Children never try to move things randomly either. God forbid a 5 year old wants to play make believe on a boat and move the cooler

[u/Bagafeet → u/stevegannonhandmade]

I once added salt to a teapot to prank my family. I forgot and was the first to drink it 💀. I don't do pranks anymore.

Another fun story: I used to prop a box of Kleenex on top of a door that's slightly ajar so it would fall on people's head as they pushed through the door. My little cousin tried to do the same thing. He couldn't reach so used a chair. Fell and broke his arm 💀🤭😂

[u/gpbst3 → u/stevegannonhandmade]

I would cut myself installing the razors

[u/GideonPiccadilly → u/stevegannonhandmade]

I have kids and not into psycho shit like gluing razorblades places to begin with. guess I'm weird :D

[u/MrSkriggleSFW]

Stupid as it is...the "thief" in this situation could actually press charges. 100% would not recommend.

[u/susan_meyers → u/MrSkriggleSFW]

Bear proofing

[u/Unequallmpala45 → u/susan_meyers]

Because bears are well known for using handles

[u/nothingspecialva → u/Unequallmpala45]

you guys are unbearable..

[u/Interesting_Cow5152 → u/nothingspecialva]

"Look, Yogi, a picnic basket!"

[u/Spiritual-Home4379 → u/Interesting_Cow5152]

Pic-a-nic basket 👍

[u/NoseMuReup → u/Spiritual-Home4379]

Raaaaaaaaa!!

[u/Wondering_Nova → u/Interesting_Cow5152]

Yogi did say “when you come to a fork in the road, take it”

[u/mrplinko → u/Unequallmpala45]

They absolutely are. they open house and vehicle doors without issue. they have learned to use the different handles.

[u/knox902 → u/mrplinko]

That person likely only ever sees bears in movies. Pretty much anyone with an ounce of experience with them know they use handles. Especially on pickanic baskets.

[u/Interesting_Cow5152 → u/Unequallmpala45]

Well they also have the right to bear arms.

[u/RN-Wingman → u/Interesting_Cow5152]

[u/loudquietstorm → u/Interesting_Cow5152]

What are they gonna do with all those bear arms, though? That’s the real question here.

[u/goofydad → u/loudquietstorm]

When shaved, they become bare bear arms.

[u/TheFallenPotHead → u/Unequallmpala45]

Actually just watched a myth busters episode last night about them testing out different things to deter a bear from a car full of food. Each time, the bear wemt straight for the handles to get in the car. It was weird but that bear knew how to get into the car for some reason instead of just forcing its way in

[u/HoidToTheMoon → u/TheFallenPotHead]

1. Bear paws at invisible barrier (window) between it and food

2. Bear's paw slides down the glass and the door until it reaches the handle

Then it's just a matter of the paw being pulled back and accidentally opening the door, or attacking/investigating the handle because it's the only part of the door to get purchase on.

[u/Stainless_Heart → u/HoidToTheMoon]

Juvenile bears also learn from momma bear. That’s part of her job, teaching young bears what food to eat and how to get it. Standing on a waterfall waiting for a trout might even be more difficult to train than door handles.

[u/ThisOnePlaysTooMuch → u/Unequallmpala45]

Funny enough, Alaskans have to use specific bear proof handles for some doors. Bears do use handles.

[u/Yumatic → u/Unequallmpala45]

A bear opened my truck door handle two nights ago.

[u/TheRealRickC137 → u/Unequallmpala45]

I hate to be that actually person but...
"actually...

[u/HoidToTheMoon → u/susan_meyers]

I know people like these clever responses but I do think it should be mentioned that courts are generally not dumb and will monotonously tear down any half-baked excuse for behavior that is obviously done for another purpose.

[u/RibboDotCom → u/HoidToTheMoon]

Yeah imagine trying this defence on a judge. That's just asking to be slapped with the maximum sentence for treating the judge like an idiot.

[u/YobaiYamete → u/RibboDotCom]

Redditors love to think they can use Kindergarten logic against judges and somehow win

I literally see people on Reddit constantly imagining they would smirk at the judge and say WHELL ACTHUALLY I TECHNICALLY DIDN'T DO X XD

and have the judge give up and let them off

[u/kittyonkeyboards → u/YobaiYamete]

Yeah that type of technicality stuff only works if you're doing corporate crimes.

[u/DBCrumpets → u/kittyonkeyboards]

The reason it doesn't work is because this isn't a technicality, it's just obviously a lie and courts aren't exceedingly gullible.

[u/Abigail716 → u/HoidToTheMoon]

The amount of times I've seen redditors recommend that you just perjure yourself and you'll get away with a crime is absurd. It's like they believe that the courts were created last night and the judge got his job an hour ago.

[u/HighwaySetara → u/HoidToTheMoon]

I'm wondering if monotonously is the word you meant to use

[u/FuzzzyRam → u/susan_meyers]

I would absolutely love to have a defendant try to claim they put razer blades on a cooler to stop bears from picking it up by the handles...

[u/jcoddinc → u/susan_meyers]

“There is considerable overlap between the intelligence of the smartest bears and the dumbest tourists.”

• Yosemite National Park ranger

[u/Legitimate-Sock-4661 → u/susan_meyers]

Most states have very comprehensive booby trap laws, that excuse likely wouldn’t fly in court

[u/R50cent → u/MrSkriggleSFW]

Yup. Home Alone did not prep a generation of kids for the reality that booby traps are illegal.

[u/roboj9 → u/R50cent]

Most things are. Doesn't stop reddit from showing us good ideas we won't do

[u/under_psychoanalyzer → u/R50cent]

Actually it's just the extreme lethal booby traps. A shot gun on a trip wire was the federal precedent set. 

 The problem is if people live the courts will let anyone attempt to shoot you for anything and you'll have to pay to get it thrown out. But that's true of completely unintentional accidents, like your neighbor suing you because their kid climbed the fence and drowned in your pool.

But yea reddit loves to pretend it knows the law

[u/bajungadustin → u/under_psychoanalyzer]

A shotgun on a trip wire when the owners were NOT present on the property

There is a fine line on that precident that hasn't been put to the test yet. I remember leagle eagle mentioning something about how if the couple had been on the property they could have been OK with the trap.

[u/under_psychoanalyzer → u/bajungadustin]

Yea that too. It's specifically an unattended, lethal trap. The reasoning is pretty straight forward: Someone's life isn't worth protecting your property when there's no threat to your person.

If you're a 10 year old home alone afraid for yourself because two grown men are breaking in you can absolutely merc the shit out of them.

[u/RibboDotCom → u/under_psychoanalyzer]

It's also because emergency services can have legitimate reasons for visiting your property and your trap has no idea who is setting it off.

[u/creasedearth → u/RibboDotCom]

And curious little kids

[u/RhynoD → u/under_psychoanalyzer]

https://definitions.uslegal.com/b/booby-traps/

A booby trap may be defined as any concealed or camouflaged device designed to cause bodily injury when triggered by any action of a person making contact with the device. This term includes guns, ammunition, or explosive devices attached to trip wires or other triggering mechanisms, sharpened stakes, nails, spikes, electrical devices, lines or wires with hooks attached, and devices for the production of toxic fumes or gases.

If a person sets up such a trap to protect his/her property, he/she will be liable for any injury or death even to an unwanted intruder such as a burglar. It is illegal to set a booby trap on one's own property to prevent intruders.

Nowhere in this legal definition does it specify the lethality of the trap, only that it is designed to cause injury or harm. A razor blade glued under the handles is designed to cause harm and you would be liable for that injury.

like your neighbor suing you because their kid climbed the fence and drowned in your pool.

https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/attractive_nuisance_doctrine

[u/syopest → u/under_psychoanalyzer]

But yea reddit loves to pretend it knows the law

This is highly ironic considering your first sentence which is not true.

[u/JakeArrietaGrande → u/under_psychoanalyzer]

Actually it's just the extreme lethal booby traps.

I don't think that's correct. Can you cite the law? Someone else linked a legal definition, and everything else I've seen says that causing bodily injury is enough to qualify

[u/1521 → u/MrSkriggleSFW]

I did this but behind my radio after the third one got stolen in a month. Not only can you be sued (I wasn’t) but you now have to deal with who knows what disease in the tweaker blood that is everywhere in your car

[u/KonigSteve → u/1521]

Well that and I wouldn't be surprised if they break some shit when they get mad about their fingers.

[u/Cyno01 → u/KonigSteve]

Right? This seems a good way to get your boat torched by some kids trying to steal some beers.

[u/DukeofVermont → u/Cyno01]

That was also my first thought. Cut someone's hand, they burn down your house.

[u/BourgeoisCheese → u/MrSkriggleSFW]

"Stupid as it is" is not stupid at all there are laws against booby traps for an enormous array of extremely good fucking reasons and I'm so exhausted with this argument online it's been done so many fucking times.

[u/notKRIEEEG → u/BourgeoisCheese]

There are good reasons, but it doesn't mean that it doesn't creates some stupid situations every now and then

[u/BourgeoisCheese → u/notKRIEEEG]

Yeah, of course. The nature of laws and language and people means no law is ever going to be proofed against absurdity. But this is one of those situations where it's like how do people think laws are written? Do you think someone was just sitting around one day and was like "wouldn't it be hilarious if booby traps were illegal?"

No. Of course fucking not. In reality what happened was decades if not centuries went by where booby traps were casually common until they wounded, scarred, maimed, and killed enough people that someone sat down and looked over the numbers and was like "Geez, these things seem to be doing a lot more harm than good. Maybe the few random potatoes we're saving from being stolen aren't worth all these neighborhood kids showing up with missing arms and legs because they were trying to retrieve a stray baseball from their neighbors property."

[u/RhynoD → u/BourgeoisCheese]

Especially when there are plenty of very legal and safe remedies, like locks. Even barbed wire is fine as long as it's conspicuous. You don't need to boobytrap your stuff.

[u/eulersidentification → u/RhynoD]

I was playing in the back, very quiet section of a car park while my parent was grabbing some sort of plumbing shit from a shop. I was just doing what a kid does, running around, jumping over stuff, see how long i could hang off a wall, etc.

Top of the wall felt a bit weird, so i pulled myself up to look and someone had cemented broken glass all across the top of the brick wall. Thank christ someone had sanded them all down with something, because I would have lost several fingers just for being a kid.

Booby traps are fucking stupid and we should all have known a good subsection of redditors would think it's "stupid" to prevent them.

[u/BeefShampoo → u/notKRIEEEG]

no, "i want to kill people who are stealing from me for who knows what reason" is not a good reason either

edit: every weird conservative beneath this post inventing magical scenarios about people who are pointlessly burning down their house with their entire family in it are just masking the fact that they want to legally murder someone for stealing their catalytic converter.

[u/barkwahlberg → u/BourgeoisCheese]

Yeah but "I can do whatever I want to anyone who might do anything illegal or remotely harmful to me" is toddler-level vindictive thinking so it will always be popular.

[u/CosmicTaco93 → u/[deleted]]

And this is why people say to kill intruders, not wound them. Shit like that, where a thief can sue you for keeping them from stealing your property.

[u/SenorSkriggle → u/CosmicTaco93]

Yes and no. Most states allow families of victims to sue in civil court for the death. Even if they were in the process of committing a crime. So unless said thief also has no family, you may get popped in court anyway. The family likely would not win but you still got lawyers and court costs.

For reference, when getting my conceal carry the instructor specifically made the class aware multiple times that you should also carry a lawyer on retainer if you decide to carry regularly. Perp may be dead but shit doesn’t end there.

[u/enowai88 → u/[deleted]]

The U.S has a fucking mess of a legal system.

[u/Zealousideal-Fix-968 → u/[deleted]]

And yet homeowners are no longer advised to display Beware of Dog signs as it supports the fact that the dog is a danger to others. Damn catch-22, can't win.

[u/Competitive_Effort13 → u/[deleted]]

Something tells me this is a gross misrepresentation of what actually happened.

[u/FaceofBeaux → u/MrSkriggleSFW]

Could have been avoided if they used the rope handles.

[u/Humble_Story_4531 → u/MrSkriggleSFW]

Hard to say. You cant set Booby traps on your property because the can impede emergency workers, but I'm not sure what the law says about booby trapping an object.

[u/ThisOnePlaysTooMuch → u/Humble_Story_4531]

I installed a car bomb in my Kia. If I can’t have it, no one can.

[u/Precedens → u/ThisOnePlaysTooMuch]

That's the spirit.

[u/frosty_balls → u/Humble_Story_4531]

It’s not hard to say, booby traps are never legal.

[u/Jelly_Belly321 → u/frosty_balls]

What if said booby traps involve comical pies to the face instead of razors to the fingers?

[u/Jael89 → u/Jelly_Belly321]

you'd hit the one guy with an allergy to those specific ingredients and he goes into anaphylaxis shock and dies

[u/Seldarin → u/Humble_Story_4531]

The law is the exact same for both.

It's not just emergency workers it's that traps are indiscriminate.

A kid walking by could run their hand under the handle or it could fall off the truck and a Good Samaritan tries to get it out of the road and lays their fingers open.

[u/Lambda_Wolf → u/Seldarin]

It's to protect the thieves, too. You don't have the right under the law to slice someone's hand open, even if they try to steal from you.

If you caught the thief in the act and decided to teach them a lesson by dragging a knife across their palm, you'd expect to go to prison, wouldn't you? Same principle, whether it's retaliatory or preemptive.

[u/Cory123125 → u/MrSkriggleSFW]

But also because you have morals right??? Right???? FFS reddit please stop with the overzealous blood lust.

[u/SlowDownHotSauce]

PSA: Booby trapping is EXTREMELY illegal. The injured person WILL win a civil suit against you. No, it does not matter that they were stealing or trespassing.

Source: Law School Torts class. The only other civil case that is easier to win is when someone defiles or abuses a dead body.

[u/Interesting_Cow5152 → u/SlowDownHotSauce]

Well this is going to ruin the tour...

[u/RoyH0bbs → u/Interesting_Cow5152]

What tour?

[u/Perfect-Oven-916 → u/RoyH0bbs]

The WORLD tour.

[u/schmuber → u/Perfect-Oven-916]

The Home Alone tour.

[u/CEOSteveSuckman → u/Perfect-Oven-916]

Cry me a river man.

[u/ejohnsteel → u/Interesting_Cow5152]

What tour?

[u/dropinbombz → u/ejohnsteel]

He said.. The WORLD TOUR

[u/GrouchyBitties → u/dropinbombz]

I am so out of the loop but why do people keep saying this sequence of phrases? Genuine question.

[u/Theseisbloodyshoes → u/GrouchyBitties]

Justin timberlake was arrested for a dui last week and said that to the officer arresting him. Officer didn’t know who he was and asked what tour? or something alone those lines.

[u/pegaunisusicorn → u/Theseisbloodyshoes]

thank you

[u/QuillQuickcard → u/SlowDownHotSauce]

100%.

You will go down. You will be paying their medical bills.

[u/hillswalker87 → u/SlowDownHotSauce]

what if it's not a razor blade but something harmless but horrible like glitter?

[u/SlowDownHotSauce → u/hillswalker87]

not legal advice - That is probably fine. As long as it is not reasonably foreseeable to cause bodily harm or emotional distress. Better off not testing that line though.

[u/UntestedMethod → u/SlowDownHotSauce]

What about Mark Rober's anti-porch-pirate glitter bombs? Could those be considered to cause emotional distress to the thieves?

I'm just curious where the line is...

[u/SlowDownHotSauce → u/UntestedMethod]

Highly unlikely. Emotional distress needs to rise to a very high level before it is something you’re likely to win in court.

The test usually involves something like showing that the person is SO emotionally distressed that they cannot function normally like they used to. Like can’t sleep, work, etc.

So not really a risk of that happening from the glitter/stink bomb stuff. MAYBE if the stink bomb caused like a crazy allergic reaction or something, but even then you’d have to prove that it was reasonably foreseeable that the allergic reaction would occur and that Marc knew/or should have known that it was likely to happen. At that point, it would honestly make more sense to sue the stink bomb manufacturer for strict product liability. Instead of Marc Rober.

[u/skippyjifluvr → u/SlowDownHotSauce]

Vanessa Bryant won an emotional distress claim against a first responder after she heard he showed someone a picture of the helicopter crash site.

[u/PhgAH → u/skippyjifluvr]

I mean yeah, knowing photo of your husband corpse is being passed around probably cause more distress than being glitter-bombed

[u/maroon1721 → u/skippyjifluvr]

I may be wrong, but I thought her claim was more akin to invasion of privacy, not a pure emotional distress claim. You can tag emotional distress along with another claim—it’s the standalone distress claim that’s almost impossible to win.

[u/SirGirthfrmDickshire → u/UntestedMethod]

I believe the booby trap lawsuit specifically covers physical damage, because if it covered nonphysical then one could argue jump scares, glitter bombs, in general most pranks could fall under being a booby trap.

[u/stuffeh → u/UntestedMethod]

Damages caused by the glitter bomb is a cleaning fee which is way less than the felony of stealing a USPS package when admitting to the theft.

[u/BourgeoisCheese → u/hillswalker87]

The legal definition of booby trap basically involves two criteria:

1. It is triggered automatically upon interaction
2. It is intended to cause bodily injury

So glitter bombs are basically fine. Honestly even a mild electric shock is probably not going to get you into trouble. If your plan might land someone in the hospital that's probably a good sign you're in the wrong.

[u/kimwim43 → u/hillswalker87]

[u/Th3Witch → u/hillswalker87]

I would assume non injury isn't an issue but that idea is being upheld by multiple content creators making glitter bomb and GPS tracking traps out of fake package deliveries and then not getting in any trouble (given follow up videos of increasingly complex booby traps of glitter and tracking devices) idk they showed up on my feed one time and didn't leave for months because I watched 1 videi

[u/Queasy_Pickle1900 → u/SlowDownHotSauce]

Yep. Knew a mechanic whose shop was broken onto every few weeks and all his tools were stolen. He electrified his garage doors and put up big signs saying they were electrified. Got sued and lost.

[u/rotj → u/Queasy_Pickle1900]

Wired like a regulation electric fence or in a way to cause injury, like hooked up to mains? If the latter, it makes more sense for him to lose the lawsuit.

[u/keostyriaru → u/rotj]

In the end, the criminals always win.

[u/DontCountToday → u/keostyriaru]

Like the criminal illegally electrifying his garage door?

[u/dsebulsk → u/DontCountToday]

Or just don’t steal.

[u/eleetpancake → u/DontCountToday]

Middle-class Sociopaths: Can I please vaporize the homeless man who stole $30 worth of equipment from my unlocked shed 👉👈😳

[u/yeslost → u/Queasy_Pickle1900]

I remember reading about one of the earlier cases about this, and it was a guy who rigged a shotgun to shoot whoever was breaking into his barn. It shot the person in the leg I think.

After the case was over, and the property owner lost, they asked him if he would've done anything differently, and he said he would've aimed the gun higher.

[u/Nodan_Turtle → u/Queasy_Pickle1900]

So if we find out some place is boobytrapped, we should hurl ourselves into the trap in order to score a massive, almost guaranteed payday

[u/mr_lamp → u/SlowDownHotSauce]

Could I give permission for someone to cut off a toe after I die to save in a jar or is that still illegal?

[u/SlowDownHotSauce → u/mr_lamp]

not legal advice - but I believe most jurisdictions require bio-waste (like body parts) to be disposed of in specific ways to avoid the spread of diseases. So most likely no, you wouldn’t be able to do that. Unless you were maybe donating your body to science or something like that. Even then, the person/entity you were donating to would likely need to have some sort of permission from the local authorities to be keeping bodily remains.

[u/SirGirthfrmDickshire → u/SlowDownHotSauce]

If you're going in for surgery you can actually request to keep the body part that's getting removed. As for someone else's body part I believe there has to be written permission and the signature of the person that died to do so. Like in a will.

[u/Sothdargaard → u/SirGirthfrmDickshire]

Probably depends on location. I work in the OR and in every state I've worked in (only 5 so far) you can clean implants (like screws, rods, etc.) and give those to the patient. You absolutely cannot give body parts to them even if they want it.

[u/HowDoIEvenEnglish → u/mr_lamp]

Human remains are highly regulated and a will isn’t enough most of the time

[u/TrueMrSkeltal → u/SlowDownHotSauce]

Wouldn’t they still get charged for attempting theft? They’re not innocent regardless.

[u/VestEmpty → u/TrueMrSkeltal]

Yes, but when it comes to severity.. boobytrapping is worse crime than theft. Stealing means taking someone else's property, boobytrapping is indiscriminate and the whole intent is to hurt someone. The threat is not only for criminals, it is innocent people who are at risk, and usually the highest risk group are those closest to you: family, friends, workmates... The attempted theft is small cakes.

[u/BourgeoisCheese → u/TrueMrSkeltal]

Yes. They are still going to be on the hook for whatever crime they were committing when they were injured which is why a lot of people are going to get away with traps that cause relatively minor injuries but it's really not a game you want to play.

And just to be clear the main reason booby traps are illegal is that in many cases the odds of them being triggered by an innocent person are far higher than their "intended" target so if you're thinking about the cost-benefit analysis of trapping your shit you've got to factor in the possibility that you end up maiming a delivery driver, first responder, family member, or relative.

[u/salikabbasi → u/SlowDownHotSauce]

What if you mark it 'Caution! Do Not Touch! Bear Proofed Container!'? As I understand it warning signs are enough no?

[u/NJDevil69 → u/SlowDownHotSauce]

You ruined Home Alone for me. What you’re telling me is that Harry and Marv could sue the McCallisters for the booby traps laid down by Kevin. They’d win the lawsuit and then go on to terrorize Kevin in his neighborhood. Damn it all.

[u/SlowDownHotSauce → u/NJDevil69]

In civil cases parents are not responsible for the personal injuries committed by their children. However, they could try to sue for a payout under the Mccalisters homeowners insurance policy…. so you might be right!

[u/solidus0079 → u/SlowDownHotSauce]

Yeah there was that case about the shotgun traps at the disused farm, IIRC. I forget the case name.

[u/aCe_FuXoR]

I'm no blood expert, but it looks to me like they smeared fake blood. Call me crazy, but if I grabbed a cooler and it sliced into my hand, I wouldn't leave my fingers there long enough to bleed that much. Nor would I smear my nubs on the handles. Cute little tough-guy fantasy.

[u/AsheronRealaidain → u/aCe_FuXoR]

100%

[u/BeautifulType → u/AsheronRealaidain]

Yep that shit looks fake af. But look at the engagement. Fake internet fake entertainment and the idiots love it.

[u/dictatednotwritten → u/aCe_FuXoR]

Agreed. Complete bullshit.

[u/RockMeIshmael → u/aCe_FuXoR]

A decade old fake post still getting epic updoots on Reddit? Say it ain’t so.

[u/Owlmoose → u/aCe_FuXoR]

Man, the cooler is in three different positions in the photos and blood stains don't work like that. I'm with you

[u/Editor_Rise_Magazine → u/aCe_FuXoR]

[u/ItsAFarOutLife → u/aCe_FuXoR]

Also blood doesn't stay red very long. Unless OP was staring at the boat from his window and immediately ran out it would have started to turn black/brown particularly in the thin parts.

[u/Salomill → u/ItsAFarOutLife]

As someone working in medicine, yes it does, it can stay many hours red

[u/m1chaelgr1mes]

I had a friend back in the 70s who grew pot. He had some kids in his neighborhood who occasionally ripped him off by stealing his plant. Just pulled them up out of the ground. That stopped when he started wrapping the stems with fishing line that had fishhooks every few inches. I'm pretty sure the last time they yanked one out of the ground they had a hard time getting it off. Ouch!

[u/machuitzil → u/m1chaelgr1mes]

I lived out in the sticks in Humboldt County for undisclosed (indoor) reasons for a time. If there's a wildfire and the firefighters come across a grow, they turn around and head back to the truck until the police secure the area. It's for good reason, and there's no fault in it, but man it is nerve-wracking when you hear that on the radio and you don't want your house to burn down.

On the other hand I lived in a development of maybe 30 or 40 houses. No fences between properties, if someone wanted to they could walk right into my back yard -but the neighborhood kids did not snoop. It kind of blew my mind because these are kids were talking about, but people up there know better than to wander onto private property.

[u/dmcent54 → u/machuitzil]

Was raised in humboldt, and you're damn right we knew better than to wander on random property. My dad was quick to grab the guns when we saw someone we didn't know pulling up.

[u/machuitzil → u/dmcent54]

This always cracked me up: if a door-to-door salesman starts hoofing around McKinleyville, people call the police and it makes the news. When there's snow in the hills, the newscasters tell people don't drive up there, they don't want you there, please don't go.

I'm active in our Union, and some of that work is political, so one time they wanted me/us to go door to door in Sacramento and spread the word. I told them flat out No. I'll stamp envelopes or something, the last thing I'm doing is walking onto someone's property, lol. Can't take the jungle out of the cat, or whatever the saying is.

[u/Proper_Career_6771 → u/machuitzil]

When there's snow in the hills, the newscasters tell people don't drive up there, they don't want you there, please don't go.

This is what cracks me up when people living in suburbs talk about how they have plans to bug out of town if society breaks down and the looting starts due to insert fantastical scenario here.

Where exactly do they think they'll go?

National/state parks? The neighbors and locals are already there. Private property? They'll be shot before they can open their car door.

There's zero chance they would make it past the roadblocks that the locals would immediately put up to stop the invasion of thug looter city-folk. Out of town is out of town.

[u/machuitzil → u/Proper_Career_6771]

Funny you should say that because the only time I've been grateful for police is when they manned roadblocks for two weeks during a wildfire in our town.

My grandma came driving down the mountain when she was evacuated and all she brought were her guns, her liquor, and her dogs. The dogs are obvious, but the rest was for fear of looters.

*In California when there are fires and evacuations, there are looters too

[u/Proper_Career_6771 → u/machuitzil]

Guns are smart thinking but grabbing the booze is hilarious.

[u/machuitzil → u/Proper_Career_6771]

Yeah better said, the guns were for looters, the liquor was for her.

[u/BecomingJudasnMyMind]

Isn't booby trapping against the law?

[u/Adjective-Noun12 → u/BecomingJudasnMyMind]

Super illegal. Whoever gets injured can sue the bejesus outta you, and they're pretty much guaranteed to win regardless of what they were doing, and if they die, you'll likely get charged with at least manslaughter.

ETA: the chief aim is to protect first responders, public service workers, snoopy children, etc. Any of them are far more likely to get caught by some random trap than a dedicated thief.

[u/SteadfastEnd → u/Adjective-Noun12]

Wouldn't they be self-admitting to a crime, though? It won't be much consolation to them to win money in a civil lawsuit if they have to do several years in prison as a trade-off.

[u/diogenessexychicken → u/SteadfastEnd]

You dont get several years of prison for stealing a cooler.

[u/SteadfastEnd → u/diogenessexychicken]

Sure, but it's the same principle with bigger things like home invasions as well. You can sue the homeowner for booby trapping, but it would be kind of legally suicidal to do so since it's an admission of guilt.

[u/diogenessexychicken → u/SteadfastEnd]

Its legal suicide at that point for the homeowner to say anything as well. The police will not be happy to see a home invader all bloodied up on your floor because ypu decided to go home alone on his ass. Police and other first responders are the entire reason these laws exist.

[u/Naugle17 → u/diogenessexychicken]

Yeah I'm a firefighter and I really don't wanna get chopped apart by somebody's booby trap when I'm doing a lift assist for meemaw in the crack house

[u/TRANSBIANGODDES → u/SteadfastEnd]

You don’t have to say you stole it you can just say you thought it was yours. A million things you can say other than you were in the middle of a crime

[u/DstinctNstincts → u/Adjective-Noun12]

So like theoretically one could go around stealing from coolers hoping to encounter a booby trap and sue?

[u/aeroxan → u/DstinctNstincts]

Sure. You can also jump into traffic hoping for a lawsuit. I don't think it's a great plan though.

[u/EscapismIsLife]

On the one hand, super illegal. On the other hand, fuck thieves. Unless they're stealing from a multimillion dollar company then it's a victimless crime.

[u/Smashed-Melon → u/EscapismIsLife]

My rule is if it's food I look the other way. But if it's for profit, fuck them. Sure steal an apple or orange off my tree, but if you steal something of value you are asking for trouble.

[u/EscapismIsLife → u/Smashed-Melon]

Yeah that's a good rule.

[u/Capt_Scarfish → u/Smashed-Melon]

"If you see someone stealing food or necessities, no you didn't."

[u/diogenessexychicken → u/EscapismIsLife]

Ok but imagine "hey dad wheres the white cooler i need it for something" "its in the boat" "dad why are there razor blades all over the fucking cooler?!?!" I agree, fuck thieves. But theres a bunch of other people you are going to hurt first, unless you are specifically leaving this out as bait and at that point fuck you, you just want to inflict harm.

[u/nollataulu → u/EscapismIsLife]

I'm of the opinion, depending on what is being stolen from me, I would weigh whether I should kill the thief, attempt to stop them, or let them go.

Something precious that is connected to my wellbeing and livelihood, I would probably kill the thief. I'd rather sit in prison for murder than live with the knowledge the thief is benefitting from me by my property or by the charges they pressed against me if I attempted to subdue them.

No, I don't rate thieves very high in society or in humankind when they are just opportunistic assholes that do not need to steal in order to survive. This would include intentional wage theft.

Call me cold.

But if someone steals diapers and a loaf of bread from a multibillion dollar chainstore, I didn't see anything.

[u/EscapismIsLife → u/nollataulu]

I've lived my entire life in poverty. I've had to fight and shed blood, sweat and tears for everything I own. I saved for years to build my new pc recently. I will defend everything I own with lethal force, because it's all irreplaceable. Damn the consequences.

[u/OhItsMrCow]

This is so illegal and bad

[u/Kobbels → u/OhItsMrCow]

Illegal yes, bad no

[u/TruRateMeGotMeBanned → u/Kobbels]

Until a child is an unintended victim? Your own kid could go out there to grab a Coke and need stitches in every finger. Warden pulling you over and checking the cooler. You see how it’s bad right

[u/personalhale → u/OhItsMrCow]

It's illegal and FAKE. Who is leaving their hands there long enough to leave a blood pattern that specific and weird?

[u/PissMissile1738]

Thats fake man, as soon as they cut their hand they would pull it away so fast no way they are leaving a whole damn hand print and all that blood

[u/PlainJaneGum]

Pretty sure that’s a crime….

[u/QuietResponsible5575]

On a cooler? Oof. I'm fairly certain this is illegal. I mean fuck a thief, but damn. It wasn't the car or boat. Also, I'd cut my own or a friends fingers off after forgetting it's there...

[u/AnInsaneMoose]

Yes, you would catch a thief

You would also catch a criminal lawsuit