I was heading home this evening and was listening to NPR and they said that two men were arrested in Dallas for illegally gathering pieces of the space shuttle.
Under what law? I can’t imagine there was an old law on the books that made it illegal to collect exploded space shuttle parts and I am almost as certain that none has been passed in the last few days despite our focus on the tragedy. So what were they charged with?
TV
Probably theft.
According to this story, http://www.cnn.com/2003/TECH/space/02/05/sprj.colu.shuttle.wrap/index.html
it was theft of government property.
Erm, it is government property. If a F-16 crashes in your back yard and you collect the tagetting system, you bet your freaking ass you’re gonna have a few well armed gentlemen appear at your door, back door, kitchen window, and out of your toilet.
Additionally, this is evidence at a crash/investigation scene. Much like interfering with debris or wreckage at other crash scenes, you can be charged.
More than anything else, I’d think, you’ll look like a real asshat when “Stealing debris from the shuttle breakup” appears on your record.
It’s Federal property.
But even if it wasn’t, I’m pretty sure there are adequate laws on the books, since they’ve also arrested people in the past for taking stuff from plane wrecks.
There is a general amnesty for people who’ve stolen shuttle parts if they come clean by 5:00 PM on Friday and are willing to show investigators where they got it.
–Cliffy
Isn’t it also a federal law not to steal from the “scene of an accident”?