More to Keeping Shuttle Parts & Regs

Bibliophage closed the thread prematurely without the full story to answer the question:

It was pointed out on the Fox coverage last night that the removal of any aircraft piece from an investigation can lead to 10 years imprisonment and/or a fine of $250,000. I can’t believe I am quoting the Fox network, but their coverage was quite informative.

Besides, if you have any respect the astronauts who lost their lives in the tragedy, wouldn’t you rather help NASA’s investigation than have bragging rights to a morbid souvenir? (Of course, you couldn’t really brag about it, could you?)

Hope you’ll do the right thing and notify the proper authorities about your piece of the investigation. - Jinx

He pled ignorance of the law and got probation, but that was back when e-Bay auctions, and the Internet, and shuttle disasters were all new, and besides, it was 13 years afterwards. I doubt whether anybody could get away with pleading ignorance of the law today, not to mention the sheer egregiousness putting the stuff up for sale the day of the disaster.

And they’re not kidding about the chemicals, either. I know, it sounds like one of those Roswell/MIB things, “Don’t touch the object”, but…

http://www.cnn.com/2003/TECH/space/02/02/sprj.colu.toxic.debris/index.html

Agree with Jinx that citing a NASA warning that conduct X is illegal is not necessarily the same as proving it or showing why. Still not sure the question’s been answered.

N.B. I’m certainly not advocating any such behavior, but I haven’t seen a cite to the specific statute, etc. that backs NASA’s position or the “aircraft investigation” position. I don’t say an applicable one doesn’t exist. The Coast Guardsman with the Challenger debris/theft of federal property may or may not be an appropriate precedent, as I’d imagine he took the tile from the territorial waters of the U.S. (Probably also violated C.G. Regs., etc.).

Does it make any difference if the debris came through your roof, or landed on your farm? Does the law of salvage/flotsam/jetsam have anything to say about this? Is the debris a deodand? I strongly suspect that at least the gov’t would say that any such common law rights are trumped by the Supremacy Clause, but I’d be curious to know exactly the chapter and verse.