# Best way to get revenge on a food thief?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-revenge-on-a-food-thief/553691>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [September 14, 2010, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-revenge-on-a-food-thief/553691 "2010-09-14T03:12:41Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 20\
**Page:** 7

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**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\
**Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-revenge-on-a-food-thief/553691/121 "2010-09-15T21:32:43Z")

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I don’t see how.

Also, it’s not illegal.

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**Author:** ![Tethered\_Kite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a5b964/32.png) [@Tethered\_Kite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tethered_Kite)\
**Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-revenge-on-a-food-thief/553691/122 "2010-09-15T21:37:06Z")

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I went on vacation and when I returned there were two homemade (and luscious) pizzas gone from my freezer. Bet I know who did it - The Bottomless Pit, AKA my son.

I’d put another in there with some noxious substance on them and announce I was going away for a couple of days, but I’m not going to because revenge. . .

. . . is a dish best served cold. 😛

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**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\
**Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-revenge-on-a-food-thief/553691/123 "2010-09-15T21:40:56Z")

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Ha, ha, beat you to it by two posts!

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**Author:** ![Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/bc8723/32.png) [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unauthorized_Cinnamon)\
**Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-revenge-on-a-food-thief/553691/124 "2010-09-15T21:50:50Z")

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> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#):
>
> I don’t see how.

Are you seriously expressing disbelief that juries use circumstantial evidence to infer intent? Do you deny that people routinely get convicted of attempted crimes without a notarized affidavit expressing their intent offered in evidence?

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**Author:** ![Acid\_Lamp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Acid\_Lamp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acid_Lamp)\
**Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-revenge-on-a-food-thief/553691/125 "2010-09-15T22:00:18Z")

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I think he’s saying that in this case the chances are more likely that someone would add something to own food outweigh any circumstantial evidence the affected person might be able to produce.

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**Author:** ![Ogre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ecb155/32.png) [@Ogre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ogre)\
**Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-revenge-on-a-food-thief/553691/126 "2010-09-15T22:08:19Z")

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> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#):
>
> Why are people so bloody concerned about the criminals anway?

Likely because they’re the ones who enjoy taking other people’s stuff.

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**Author:** ![bucketybuck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/898d66/32.png) [@bucketybuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bucketybuck)\
**Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-revenge-on-a-food-thief/553691/127 "2010-09-15T22:57:03Z")

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> [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](#):
>
> > [@bucketybuck](#):
> >
> > Prove it.
> 
> Jesus, does anyone read my posts?
> 
> First, people are saying it’s illegal. What you do can be illegal even if it can’t be proven that you did it. They are separate (though related) issues.
> 
> Second, it is perfectly possible to prove intent. Contrary to what you may believe, a jury does not need a notarized affidavit from you stating your intent to find that you intended something. Sure it is not certain that this crime would be punished, but it is completely possible.

Read this.

Standing in court, prove that “Joe-Bloggs” wrote “do not eat this” (as per TDN’s quote)on his ice cream container because he had a specific hope that the thief would eat it anyway. Prove that. Go on.

By the way, Joe Bloggs is in court right then. He says he wrote “Do not eat this” on his ice cream because he didnt want anybody else to eat his ice cream. A crazy notion 'tis true. Prove otherwise. Go on.

Why is laxative in his ice cream? He feels he needs to take laxatives. Why ice cream? He doesnt like the taste of laxatives, so mixes it with tasty ice cream. Why is it in the fridge? Its ice cream, needs to be kept cold. Wasnt he worried that somebody could take his laxative? Yes, a bit, so he decided to write “do not eat this” on the carton.

Thats his story. You feel you can prove a different intent? Go on then, PROVE HIM WRONG.

Thats right, you cant.

All this is SDMB rubbish anyway. Post a story about pulling a harmless prank and sure enough somebody will berate you for breaking the law and destroying society. Sheesh, is it always about the lawyers for you lot?

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**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\
**Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-revenge-on-a-food-thief/553691/128 "2010-09-15T22:59:55Z")

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> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#):
>
> You did not put in a place of human accessibility. You stored it privately and it was stolen. Everybody else is full of shit on this one, not me.

From the OP:

> [@](#):
>
> So, I got that half gallon of cookie dough ice cream, labelled it appropriately, and stuck it in the shared freezer while crossing my fingers…

IN THE SHARED FREEZER. This is not privately stored.

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**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\
**Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-revenge-on-a-food-thief/553691/129 "2010-09-15T23:03:02Z")

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> [@muldoonthief](#):
>
> [  
> Let’s examine the etc.'s though:  
> Exlax? Is it noxious or deleterious? I guess that’s arguable either way.
> 
> Habaneros? Are they noxious or deleterious? Millions of people eat them all the time. If the law is such that putting habanero sauce in ice cream and putting it in the freezer is illegal, then putting it in a sandwich and putting it in the community fridge would be just as illegal. I’d have a tough time saying that put an actual food substance in another food, even in a way designed to catch a thief, would actually be in violation of this law.

I’ll agree with you about the habanero’s.

But I’d argue that ExLax could be defined as a deleterious substance if put into a food item. It does not belong in a food item and is not a food. It is an over the counter drug.

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**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\
**Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-revenge-on-a-food-thief/553691/130 "2010-09-15T23:05:49Z")

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> [@bucketybuck](#):
>
> Read this.
> 
> Standing in court, prove that “Joe-Bloggs” wrote “do not eat this” (as per TDN’s quote)on his ice cream container because he had a specific hope that the thief would eat it anyway. Prove that. Go on.

I call Joe Bloggs roomate to the stand.

Did you see Joe Bloggs write “do not eat this” on his ice cream?  
“I did”  
What did he say as he wrote it?  
"He said, “this will serve that Goddamn ice cream thief right when he eats this and shits himself from here to Tuesday.”

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\
**Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-revenge-on-a-food-thief/553691/131 "2010-09-15T23:21:39Z")

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> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#):
>
> > [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#):
> >
> > You did not put in a place of human accessibility. You stored it privately and it was stolen. Everybody else is full of shit on this one, not me.
> 
> From the OP:
> 
> > [@](#):
> >
> > So, I got that half gallon of cookie dough ice cream, labelled it appropriately, and stuck it in the shared freezer while crossing my fingers…
> 
> IN THE SHARED FREEZER. This is not privately stored.

Yes it i privately stored. The communal freezer exists for the storing of private property. That is the expectation. Jyust because something is in it does not mean that it is being provided for public distribution. There is no access being provded here. The container itself is private property, is labled as such and is reasonably undetrstood as such. I cannot believe how completely full of shit people are being about this.

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**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\
**Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-revenge-on-a-food-thief/553691/132 "2010-09-15T23:22:55Z")

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> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#):
>
> > [@bucketybuck](#):
> >
> > Read this.
> > 
> > Standing in court, prove that “Joe-Bloggs” wrote “do not eat this” (as per TDN’s quote)on his ice cream container because he had a specific hope that the thief would eat it anyway. Prove that. Go on.
> 
> I call Joe Bloggs roomate to the stand.
> 
> Did you see Joe Bloggs write “do not eat this” on his ice cream?  
> “I did”  
> What did he say as he wrote it?  
> "He said, “this will serve that Goddamn ice cream thief right when he eats this and shits himself from here to Tuesday.”

Hearsay.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/bc8723/32.png) [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unauthorized_Cinnamon)\
**Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-revenge-on-a-food-thief/553691/133 "2010-09-15T23:24:13Z")

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> [@bucketybuck](#):
>
> Read this.
> 
> Standing in court, prove that “Joe-Bloggs” wrote “do not eat this” (as per TDN’s quote)on his ice cream container because he had a specific hope that the thief would eat it anyway. Prove that. Go on.
> 
> By the way, Joe Bloggs is in court right then. He says he wrote “Do not eat this” on his ice cream because he didnt want anybody else to eat his ice cream. A crazy notion 'tis true. Prove otherwise. Go on.
> 
> Why is laxative in his ice cream? He feels he needs to take laxatives. Why ice cream? He doesnt like the taste of laxatives, so mixes it with tasty ice cream. Why is it in the fridge? Its ice cream, needs to be kept cold. Wasnt he worried that somebody could take his laxative? Yes, a bit, so he decided to write “do not eat this” on the carton.
> 
> Thats his story. You feel you can prove a different intent? Go on then, PROVE HIM WRONG.
> 
> Thats right, you cant.
> 
> All this is SDMB rubbish anyway. Post a story about pulling a harmless prank and sure enough somebody will berate you for breaking the law and destroying society. Sheesh, is it always about the lawyers for you lot?

Are you arguing that someone who intends only to dose himself and accidentally doses someone else is innocent? That’s trivially true.

Or are you arguing that perjuring yourself might avoid conviction in a criminal case? Well duh. That doesn’t mean that committing a crime is legal.

As for the note - drunk drivers don’t intend to kill people, as a rule. They may in fact take great pains to drive as safely as possible given their condition. However, they can reasonably foresee the outcome that someone could get killed, therefore they have the necessary mens rea to be found guilty of homicide. In this case, the defendant would have more of a guilty intent, since they don’t just recklessly ignore the possibility of the food being taken, they are relying on it based on the evidence and history.

Look. Are food thieves jerks who deserve a case of the runs as punishment? Sure.

Could you dose a food thief and probably get away with it? Sure.

Is it \*legal \*to deliberately dose a food thief? Probably not.

**Dio** , that statement is excluded from hearsay because it’s a statement against the defendant’s interest.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\
**Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-revenge-on-a-food-thief/553691/134 "2010-09-15T23:27:09Z")

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> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#):
>
> > [@muldoonthief](#):
> >
> > [  
> > Let’s examine the etc.'s though:  
> > Exlax? Is it noxious or deleterious? I guess that’s arguable either way.
> > 
> > Habaneros? Are they noxious or deleterious? Millions of people eat them all the time. If the law is such that putting habanero sauce in ice cream and putting it in the freezer is illegal, then putting it in a sandwich and putting it in the community fridge would be just as illegal. I’d have a tough time saying that put an actual food substance in another food, even in a way designed to catch a thief, would actually be in violation of this law.
> 
> I’ll agree with you about the habanero’s.
> 
> But I’d argue that ExLax could be defined as a deleterious substance if put into a food item. It does not belong in a food item and is not a food. It is an over the counter drug.

You’re argument would fail. It is not deleterious, and it’s not your place to decide for others how they are able to imgest it. People mix medications with food all the fucking time. My job involves passing a lot of meds, and frequently certain kinds of meds – including laxatives – are specifically instructed to be mixed with food for specific individuals. Saying “you have no right to mix your laxative with ice cream” is a non-fucking starter.

Not that any of this would ever be charged anyway. It’s the sheerest fantasy that there would be a criminal trial.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\
**Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-revenge-on-a-food-thief/553691/135 "2010-09-15T23:29:43Z")

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> [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](#):
>
> > [@bucketybuck](#):
> >
> > Read this.
> > 
> > Standing in court, prove that “Joe-Bloggs” wrote “do not eat this” (as per TDN’s quote)on his ice cream container because he had a specific hope that the thief would eat it anyway. Prove that. Go on.
> > 
> > By the way, Joe Bloggs is in court right then. He says he wrote “Do not eat this” on his ice cream because he didnt want anybody else to eat his ice cream. A crazy notion 'tis true. Prove otherwise. Go on.
> > 
> > Why is laxative in his ice cream? He feels he needs to take laxatives. Why ice cream? He doesnt like the taste of laxatives, so mixes it with tasty ice cream. Why is it in the fridge? Its ice cream, needs to be kept cold. Wasnt he worried that somebody could take his laxative? Yes, a bit, so he decided to write “do not eat this” on the carton.
> > 
> > Thats his story. You feel you can prove a different intent? Go on then, PROVE HIM WRONG.
> > 
> > Thats right, you cant.
> > 
> > All this is SDMB rubbish anyway. Post a story about pulling a harmless prank and sure enough somebody will berate you for breaking the law and destroying society. Sheesh, is it always about the lawyers for you lot?
> 
> Are you arguing that someone who intends only to dose himself and accidentally doses someone else is innocent? That’s trivially true.
> 
> Or are you arguing that perjuring yourself might avoid conviction in a criminal case? Well duh. That doesn’t mean that committing a crime is legal.
> 
> As for the note - drunk drivers don’t intend to kill people, as a rule. They may in fact take great pains to drive as safely as possible given their condition. However, they can reasonably foresee the outcome that someone could get killed, therefore they have the necessary mens rea to be found guilty of homicide. In this case, the defendant would have more of a guilty intent, since they don’t just recklessly ignore the possibility of the food being taken, they are relying on it based on the evidence and history.
> 
> Look. Are food thieves jerks who deserve a case of the runs as punishment? Sure.
> 
> Could you dose a food thief and probably get away with it? Sure.
> 
> Is it \*legal \*to deliberately dose a food thief? Probably not.

[  
It’s not deliberate. It can only happen if the person steals the food. It’s not a crime to dose your own food with laxatives. If someone steals that item, then you are the victim.

> [@](#):
>
> **Dio** , that statement is excluded from hearsay because it’s a statement against the defendant’s interest.

Then it’s up to the jury whether to believe the roommate. It would be pretty easy just to say the roommate is full of shit. Not that I think there’s the slightest chance there would ever be a trial, or that I beleive it would be illegal even if you admitted that was your intent.

Certainly no jury would convict.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\
**Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-revenge-on-a-food-thief/553691/136 "2010-09-15T23:34:23Z")

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You don’t have to perjur yourself, by the way. You don’t have to testify at all. You just need your lawyer to ask the right questions.

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**Author:** ![EVERYNAMEISTAKEN](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ac8455/32.png) [@EVERYNAMEISTAKEN](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EVERYNAMEISTAKEN)\
**Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-revenge-on-a-food-thief/553691/137 "2010-09-15T23:34:42Z")

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I don’t know, but I have had people steal my food too. \>:( There was one girl at my last place of employment who openly stole LOTS of people’s food, and didn’t even make an attempt to hide it. She would say, “Oh, yeah, those were good.” or “Oh, sorry, I didn’t realize that that was yours.” (Even when it had the name clearly written on it.) She never bothered to pay anyone back, of course. She stole money too. Recently she had her iPod stolen, and to be honest, I was pretty damn happy about it. I guess that makes me not a very good person.

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**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\
**Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-revenge-on-a-food-thief/553691/138 "2010-09-15T23:43:13Z")

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> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#):
>
> > [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#):
> >
> > From the OP:
> > 
> > IN THE SHARED FREEZER. This is not privately stored.
> 
> Yes it i privately stored. The communal freezer exists for the storing of private property. That is the expectation. Jyust because something is in it does not mean that it is being provided for public distribution. There is no access being provded here. The container itself is private property, is labled as such and is reasonably undetrstood as such. I cannot believe how completely full of shit people are being about this.

Nope, you are factually wrong here. The freezer is accessible to the public. You have a duty to not put deleterious substances in areas where they might accidentally be ingested by innocent bystanders. For example, if you put poison in a jar labelled “candy”, and put it in a public place, you would not have a reasonable defense to say “it was my private poison in my private jar”

The law is phrased as it is to prevent people from doing exactly what is suggested. You may argue that a person might get away with it, but that is different from whether or not it is morally or legally correct.

> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#):
>
> Hearsay. .

You apparently don’t know what hearsay means. Here ya go:

> [@](#):
>
> ```
> Evidence based on the reports of others rather than the personal knowledge of a witness and therefore generally not admissible as testimony.
> 
> ```

In my example, the witness was testifying about WHAT HE HAD PERSONALLY HEARD. He was not relaying what someone else told him. Hearsay would be :

"I heard my friend Jim say that Joe Bloggs said ““this will serve that Goddamn ice cream thief right when he eats this and shits himself from here to Tuesday.””

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\
**Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-revenge-on-a-food-thief/553691/139 "2010-09-15T23:47:20Z")

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> [@Ogre](#):
>
> > [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#):
> >
> > Why are people so bloody concerned about the criminals anway?
> 
> Likely because they’re the ones who enjoy taking other people’s stuff.

Bullshit. Personally, I think that the satisfaction derived from such a plan is not worth the [possible consequences](http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Teen+faces+charges+for+laxative+brownies-a01611328398).

Just because a lunch-pilferer has no moral high ground, that doesn’t mean that they’re necessarily going to shrug off being dosed with laxatives as “Ha ha, you got me.” The law doesn’t have a huge sense of humour about these things, either.

The wording of laws covering this sort of thing varies, naturally - but you’re not going to find a loophole that will get you off if the victim is a thieving bastard.

> [@typical wording](#):
>
> “Adulteration” means the intentional adding of any substance, which has the capacity either acting alone or in conjunction with the other substance to cause death, physical injury or illness by ingestion, injection, inhalation or absorption, to another substance having a customary or reasonably foreseeable human use.

If someone has been taking your food from somewhere, and you leave adulterated food in that place, it’s reasonable to foresee that someone might consume it. (Otherwise, why put it there?) Congratulations, you’re a felon!

The OP asks for the best way to get revenge on a food thief. I’m pretty sure that the best way \*doesn’t \*expose you to significant legal liability.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\
**Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-way-to-get-revenge-on-a-food-thief/553691/140 "2010-09-15T23:50:56Z")

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> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#):
>
> > [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#):
> >
> > Yes it i privately stored. The communal freezer exists for the storing of private property. That is the expectation. Jyust because something is in it does not mean that it is being provided for public distribution. There is no access being provded here. The container itself is private property, is labled as such and is reasonably undetrstood as such. I cannot believe how completely full of shit people are being about this.
> 
> Nope, you are factually wrong here. The freezer is accessible to the public.

No it isn’t. That’s not what it means to make something accessible. It’s a communal freezer intended for private storage. The individual comntainers are marked and understood as private property. The phrase in that statute that all the bleeding heart food thief defenders are pouncing on like oxygen refers to things like placing a bowl of candy out at Halloween.

> [@](#):
>
> The law is phrased as it is to prevent people from doing exactly what is suggested. You may argue that a person might get away with it, but that is different from whether or not it is morally or legally correct.

No it isn’t. It’s phrased to stop people from putting out bowls of poisoned Halloween candy in public cases. It does not apply to things that are stolen.

> [@](#):
>
> You apparently don’t know what hearsay means. Here ya go:
> 
> > [@](#):
> >
> > ```
> > Evidence based on the reports of others rather than the personal knowledge of a witness and therefore generally not admissible as testimony.
> > 
> > ```
> 
> In my example, the witness was testifying about WHAT HE HAD PERSONALLY HEARD. He was not relaying what someone else told him. Hearsay would be :
> 
> "I heard my friend Jim say that Joe Bloggs said ““this will serve that Goddamn ice cream thief right when he eats this and shits himself from here to Tuesday.””

No one is going to give a shit what Joe Bob says. That’s still not proof. Joe Bob is a fucking liar. Fuck Joe Bob.

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