This is embarrasing because I have a house ful of guns and didn't have one when I needed it. I had returned from a range trip the day before and my firearms were either in the safe or out of ammo. I didn't even have my gun on the nightstand and my truck gun was in the truck in the garage. I was up until like 0330 assembling a home theater system and cut the shit out of my finger. Took the trash to the curb before bed at like 0335. Layeing there awake with my fingr hurting like hell. Just when my air compressor fires up I think I hear a car. It runs for two or three minutes and when it shuts off I swear I can her a guy talking. I pass it iff as the wind or something and then hear a trashcan fall over.I'm up like a flash and looking out my window. I see a blacked out pickup at my curb and a guy shoulder deep in my trashcan. I'm totally freaked and can see an open trash bag sitting on the tailgate of his truck. I think it was for stolen personal info. I run down stairs and take a good look out my front window. A dude is sitting in the idling truck and I can tell the trash raider is finishing as he is taking a seat on the tailgate. I knew I didn't have time to get to my pistol before they pulled out and since I was really pissed by now I went out the front door. I guess this is the point in the story where I should mention I'm naked. I went out the front door of my house( leaving it open for a hasty retreat) armed with nothing more than my dick and a real bad attitude. After shouting at the top of my lungs "what the fuck are you doing" they tore out of there like I had a tank backing me up.I swear I thought the guy on the tailgate was going to fly off. He would have had a naked guy pummeling the shit out of him if it had happened. This was about a year ago february and I dont even think I realized I was naked until it was all over!!My friend gave me all kinds of shit(rightly so perhaps) about going out there unarmed but I explained that I took a close look and didn't think they were armed. I'm glad they weren't or I would have had to test that hasty retreat theory. Now the trash goes to the curb day of ALWAYS. It usually did anyway but I thought to myself it's 3 am what could happen. To make a long story longer the cops were called but my town is so small they don't have an officer on duty at night. I call the sherriff and he calls them.They took a report over the phone and I declined thier offer to have someone come out. It was a case of too little too late when I'm standing in my driveway at like 0415 with a holstered .38. I live on a cul de sac and thought I was going to shit myself when I saw headlights coming my way. I was ready for anything when a strange car pulled up and a newspaper came flying out.He probably wondered what I was doing standing in my driveway at that hour of the night. At least I had put some clothes on.Thank god the little woman doesn't put personal info in the trash. The lesson I learned was to always have a piece within arms reach and now I always always do. Sorry for the long post but it's a long sad tale.

pretty stupid to respond with a firearm, when the guy was within his rights to look all through your garbage.    The courts have consistently ruled that there is no expectation of privacy once you take your garbage off your property.


on second read WTF?!?!     are you drunk?   there are to many errors in judgement for me to run them all down.    You should sell me all your firearms for 90% discount, since you shouldn't have them.

Quoted: This is embarrasing because I have a house ful of guns and didn't have one when I needed it. I had returned from a range trip the day before and my firearms were either in the safe or out of ammo. I didn't even have my gun on the nightstand and my truck gun was in the truck in the garage. I was up until like 0330 assembling a home theater system and cut the shit out of my finger. Took the trash to the curb before bed at like 0335. Layeing there awake with my fingr hurting like hell. Just when my air compressor fires up I think I hear a car. It runs for two or three minutes and when it shuts off I swear I can her a guy talking. I pass it iff as the wind or something and then hear a trashcan fall over.I'm up like a flash and looking out my window. I see a blacked out pickup at my curb and a guy shoulder deep in my trashcan. I'm totally freaked and can see an open trash bag sitting on the tailgate of his truck. I think it was for stolen personal info. I run down stairs and take a good look out my front window. A dude is sitting in the idling truck and I can tell the trash raider is finishing as he is taking a seat on the tailgate. I knew I didn't have time to get to my pistol before they pulled out and since I was really pissed by now I went out the front door. I guess this is the point in the story where I should mention I'm naked. I went out the front door of my house( leaving it open for a hasty retreat) armed with nothing more than my dick and a real bad attitude. After shouting at the top of my lungs "what the fuck are you doing" they tore out of there like I had a tank backing me up.I swear I thought the guy on the tailgate was going to fly off. He would have had a naked guy pummeling the shit out of him if it had happened. This was about a year ago february and I dont even think I realized I was naked until it was all over!!My friend gave me all kinds of shit(rightly so perhaps) about going out there unarmed but I explained that I took a close look and didn't think they were armed. I'm glad they weren't or I would have had to test that hasty retreat theory. Now the trash goes to the curb day of ALWAYS. It usually did anyway but I thought to myself it's 3 am what could happen. To make a long story longer the cops were called but my town is so small they don't have an officer on duty at night. I call the sherriff and he calls them.They took a report over the phone and I declined thier offer to have someone come out. It was a case of too little too late when I'm standing in my driveway at like 0415 with a holstered .38. I live on a cul de sac and thought I was going to shit myself when I saw headlights coming my way. I was ready for anything when a strange car pulled up and a newspaper came flying out.He probably wondered what I was doing standing in my driveway at that hour of the night. At least I had put some clothes on.Thank god the little woman doesn't put personal info in the trash. The lesson I learned was to always have a piece within arms reach and now I always always do. Sorry for the long post but it's a long sad tale.

Paragraphs dude...

Once you put your garbage at the curb it no longer belongs to you and ANYONE can take it.  It is no crime.  

My city has a municiple code that says all trash in the bins belongs to the waste management company once placed in the bin. That way dumpster divers can be arrested for petty theft or attempt petty theft.

My trash is on my property at the curb(it's in my driveway) and until it is mixed with common garbage it is mine. The police have to have a search warrant for your trash.Once it's mixed with everyone elses trash it's common property. Can someone take my trash can whenever they want because it's at the curb?Those cans are my property no matter where they are at. If someone steals my personal info and destroys my credit that would be bad also. I also own my car and park it every where but would be upset if someone stole it.I also wouldn't have shot anyone over garbage.I would probably want a gun in my hand if some shady guy was just standing at the curb eyeing my house at 345 am.I mean the dude was at my house in a darkened blacked out pickup. He was obviously going through every ones trash and I'm sure it wasn't for recyclables. The Sherriff even said this is a common way identity theives steal info. You can learn an amazing amount about a person through their trash. He also stated that if they had been caught it would have constituted theft for the reasons I stated above.Once again my trash is in my driveway at the curb. They were ON MY PROPERTY when they were attempting to steal whatever could be of value to them.I would have kept them right there for the cops if I could have. The only thing I would change is I would be clothed and armed.

That is one limp-dick "wish-I'd-a-drawn-down" post.

Quoted: My trash is on my property at the curb(it's in my driveway) and until it is mixed with common garbage it is mine. The police have to have a search warrant for your trash.Once it's mixed with everyone elses trash it's common property. Can someone take my trash can whenever they want because it's at the curb?Those cans are my property no matter where they are at. If someone steals my personal info and destroys my credit that would be bad also. I also own my car and park it every where but would be upset if someone stole it.I also wouldn't have shot anyone over garbage.I would probably want a gun in my hand if some shady guy was just standing at the curb eyeing my house at 345 am.I mean the dude was at my house in a darkened blacked out pickup. He was obviously going through every ones trash and I'm sure it wasn't for recyclables. The Sherriff even said this is a common way identity theives steal info. You can learn an amazing amount about a person through their trash. He also stated that if they had been caught it would have constituted theft for the reasons I stated above.Once again my trash is in my driveway at the curb. They were ON MY PROPERTY when they were attempting to steal whatever could be of value to them.I would have kept them right there for the cops if I could have. The only thing I would change is I would be clothed and armed.

Wrong, but go ahead and shoot them, then come back and tell us what prison life is like.  

Shred or burn your sensative data.  

Ever heard of a confetti shredder?

Get one.

And don't take your trash to the curb until daylight. If they come on your property at night to dig through the trash, at least here in Texas, you are within your right to drop them where they stand.

I hear letting loose 30 rds into the air chases away people. And they don't come back either.

Ever heard of a confetti shredder?

Get one.

And don't take your trash to the curb until daylight. If they come on your property at night to dig through the trash, at least here in Texas, you are within your right to drop them where they stand.
        Got one and use it. Also never take trash out at night anymore,never did that often to begin with.
         I can't believe the people at this board are actually defending some one who was obviously trying to steal in the middle of the night. I dont care if it's a fucking dog turd in my driveway anyone nosing around it at three in the morning is going to get a little something from me. I suppose I should have wished them a good night as they drove away with my neighbors credit card statements and bank account numbers.                                                                                                                                                                      I can't understand how you believe that trash in MY CAN, IN MY DRIVEWAY is open territory at anytime of the day or night for anyone to go through. Maybe the sherriff was lying when he said it was a crime to be on my property in the middle of the night going through my things. Better yet. What would you do at almost 4 in the morning when you find some guys throwing your trash all over you lawn and looking for shit to steal.Somehow I think passing it off as the local recycling police and going back to bed is out of the question.I tried a few paragraphs this time at least. I wish I lived in Texas.

Quoted:          This is embarrasing because I have a house ful of guns and didn't have one when I needed it. I had returned from a range trip the day before and my firearms were either in the safe or out of ammo. I didn't even have my gun on the nightstand and my truck gun was in the truck in the garage.             I was up until like 0330 assembling a home theater system and cut the shit out of my finger. Took the trash to the curb before bed at like 0335. Layeing there awake with my fingr hurting like hell. Just when my air compressor fires up I think I hear a car. It runs for two or three minutes and when it shuts off I swear I can her a guy talking. I pass it iff as the wind or something and then hear a trashcan fall over.          I'm up like a flash and looking out my window. I see a blacked out pickup at my curb and a guy shoulder deep in my trashcan. I'm totally freaked and can see an open trash bag sitting on the tailgate of his truck. I think it was for stolen personal info. I run down stairs and take a good look out my front window. A dude is sitting in the idling truck and I can tell the trash raider is finishing as he is taking a seat on the tailgate. I knew I didn't have time to get to my pistol before they pulled out and since I was really pissed by now I went out the front door.            I guess this is the point in the story where I should mention I'm naked.(wanted to leave this on it's own)            I went out the front door of my house( leaving it open for a hasty retreat) armed with nothing more than my dick and a real bad attitude. After shouting at the top of my lungs "what the fuck are you doing" they tore out of there like I had a tank backing me up.           I swear I thought the guy on the tailgate was going to fly off. He would have had a naked guy pummeling the shit out of him if it had happened. This was about a year ago february and I dont even think I realized I was naked until it was all over!!My friend gave me all kinds of shit(rightly so perhaps) about going out there unarmed but I explained that I took a close look and didn't think they were armed. dead naked guy. no?          I'm glad they weren't or I would have had to test that hasty retreat theory. Now the trash goes to the curb day of ALWAYS. It usually did anyway but I thought to myself it's 3 am what could happen. To make a long story longer the cops were called but my town is so small they don't have an officer on duty at night. I call the sherriff and he calls them.They took a report over the phone and I declined thier offer to have someone come out.          It was a case of too little too late when I'm standing in my driveway at like 0415 with a holstered .38. I live on a cul de sac and thought I was going to shit myself when I saw headlights coming my way. I was ready for anything when a strange car pulled up and a newspaper came flying out. He probably wondered what I was doing standing in my driveway at that hour of the night. At least I had put some clothes on.          Thank god the little woman doesn't put personal info in the trash. The lesson I learned was to always have a piece within arms reach and now I always always do. Sorry for the long post but it's a long sad tale.

for some reason i can't get the TAB button to work. Screw that. It's in paragraph form now. EMA.

Was it that chick who played Lois Lane in the Christopher Reeve Superman movies?  I hear she has no teeth and is now a dumpster diver!!

"Can you read my mind. . . . . . .?

We're not defending would-be identify thiefs, but you are absoloutly incorrect in your assertion that the trash was your property. If they were stealing you can, it might be another story.

Dumpster divers you say?
I bet they have accounts over at frugal squirrels.

Quoted: My trash is on my property at the curb(it's in my driveway) and until it is mixed with common garbage it is mine. The police have to have a search warrant for your trash.Once it's mixed with everyone elses trash it's common property. Can someone take my trash can whenever they want because it's at the curb?Those cans are my property no matter where they are at. If someone steals my personal info and destroys my credit that would be bad also. I also own my car and park it every where but would be upset if someone stole it.I also wouldn't have shot anyone over garbage.I would probably want a gun in my hand if some shady guy was just standing at the curb eyeing my house at 345 am.I mean the dude was at my house in a darkened blacked out pickup. He was obviously going through every ones trash and I'm sure it wasn't for recyclables. The Sherriff even said this is a common way identity theives steal info. You can learn an amazing amount about a person through their trash. He also stated that if they had been caught it would have constituted theft for the reasons I stated above.Once again my trash is in my driveway at the curb. They were ON MY PROPERTY when they were attempting to steal whatever could be of value to them.I would have kept them right there for the cops if I could have. The only thing I would change is I would be clothed and armed.

A few points here, and then i am hitting the hay:

logic doesn't necessarily coincide with legal precedent.    You mentioned the trash cans were on the curb, yes?   It may be your property, but where is the public easement?   if the trash cans were on the curb/sidewalk (even if you "own" the property the curb is on) there is no legal expectation of privacy, i.e. your trash is fair game.    In other words, if you ran out there (even with clothes on) and you apprehended the guy going through your trash, there would never be  a conviction, and you would most likely get a countersuit.

so either put your garbage out when you see the truck coming, or criss cross shred/ burn your papers.   and opt out financial offers originating from the 4 (3?) credit  companies  (how the crap do you spell buerau?)  

bureau

Quoted: bureau

thanks  

*need to go to sleep*

- It's not worth the banning.

sorry dude, when the trash goes out it's pretty much up for grabs.


Also you seem convinced they were ID thieves?  Has it occurred to you that someone might be investigating you for some reason?

Quoted: (how the crap do you spell buerau?)

I had the EXACT same problem tonight -- see my needing insurance info post.

          I'm pretty sure I'm not under investigation for anything. I've never been arrested although I have been to defensive driving like five times.
         I know exactly where the public easements are and my cans are on my side of them. The local PD also told me that what went on would most likely constitute theft.
          Anyone who goes through trash in the middle of the night is fishy unless the govmt is investigating me which I highly doubt.
           No one seems to want to answer the question of what they would do if someone was standing around the front of their home at 3 or 4 in the morning with no business to be there.I mean it's a free country but these guys were like 50 yards from where my kids sleep. That kind of worries me. It doesn't matter really as this story is about a year old and I thought it would spark some interesting debate and it has.
           I wasn't drunk and even if I was armed would never intend to kill over this incident only protect myself if need be. My robe was in the laundry,that's why I was naked. The only reason I went out in the first place is I wanted thse guys to know they were busted.My wife was on with 911 while I was yelling at them.
         ]

Good job model citizen. You homeowner association would be proud of you..

Quoted: Ever heard of a confetti shredder? Get one. And don't take your trash to the curb until daylight. If they come on your property at night to dig through the trash, at least here in Texas, you are within your right to drop them where they stand.

That is not absolute at all............

Quoted: Good job model citizen. You homeowner association would be proud of you..

lol. im very proud of the trash digger runner offer.

Quoted: My city has a municiple code that says all trash in the bins belongs to the waste management company once placed in the bin. That way dumpster divers can be arrested for petty theft or attempt petty theft.

Mine too, and they get especially sore when people start ripping off the "recycle" bins.

I am recommending him for ARFCOM ELITE!

As stated prior; enjoy your time in prison should this ever happen again and you get your wish.  It is well established in court law that the garbage is faor game.  Nobody is taking teh side of your suspected ID thief, we are siding with the presedence of law.  It is not just government officers and ID thieves who will grab your trash for a bit of garbology either.

But thanks for being a poster child for the ant-gun crowd.  If this is an example of your bad judgement, you should reconsider if firearms are right for you.

Quoted:           No one seems to want to answer the question of what they would do if someone was standing around the front of their home at 3 or 4 in the morning with no business to be there.I mean it's a free country but these guys were like 50 yards from where my kids sleep. That kind of worries me. It doesn't matter really as this story is about a year old and I thought it would spark some interesting debate and it has.

Hmm, I'm out on the street at 3-4 AM 3/4 nights a week.  I even walk down the street in all black clothes carrying a flashlight - probably less than 50 ft from where somebody's kids are asleep.....  Unless the person is doing something suspicious - yes, going thru the trash is suspicious but not necessarily illegal - they can be stand in the middle of the street.

My town has the no dumpster diving ordinance as well.  Girl I arrested the other night for a no bail warrant was not happy me contacting her as she came out of the dumpster:)

Brian

top your trash off with used kitty litter or dog turds, problem solved

So what if his trach cans were say, on the side of his house?

Same scenario (0300 hrs).

Would you still think about defending the divers?

What say ye?

Quoted: Dumpster divers you say? I bet they have accounts over at frugal squirrels.

freegan.info

About your actions...


That's tight, man, that's tight....



Seriously, so what?  If you and the wifey-poo destroy all personal info like smart people should, let them have at it...  I'm just happy you didn't get dead.  

Shred and burn all personal info yourself and you will never have a problem.

If stealing personal info was the reason behind the incident I would think the thieves would have just put the trash bags in the back of the truck to be gone through at their leasure instead of on the curb, in the dark.

You're really reaching for a reason to draw down in this situation.

the "curb" is not your property... its the citys...

Draw down! Err... pants down!

why chase them..... when you can catch them?!?!?

 It's always best to offer visitors a cold drink (or coffee when it's cold) when they're sifting through your trash cans. (Nekkid and unarmed AIN'T the way to go, I agree there!)  What exactly IS the proper response?  Shouting from inside the house? Being armed (concealed), clothed and asking politely, what is your business here?  Just call the popo and HOPE you didn't leave a credit card bill in the bag by mistake?  Lotsa scolding here but little in the way of real answers.  
 
 So if your city has an ordinance against "dumpster diving" it is not valid because of other court cases that find anything outside NEAR the curb is fair game to criminals?  Is there a distance from the curb that constitutes your property or is it a free for all if it's in view.  Does an easement (not the sidewalk) allow for ANYONE to tresspass on your property or is it for utilities etc.?  This is very interesting reading.  

Quoted: I am recommending him for ARFCOM ELITE! As stated prior; enjoy your time in prison should this ever happen again and you get your wish.  It is well established in court law that the garbage is faor game.  Nobody is taking teh side of your suspected ID thief, we are siding with the presedence of law.  It is not just government officers and ID thieves who will grab your trash for a bit of garbology either. But thanks for being a poster child for the ant-gun crowd.  If this is an example of your bad judgement, you should reconsider if firearms are right for you.

+1

Shredded (cross cut), mixed with kitchen garbage and USED kitty litter.  I would sell tickets for people to watch investigators and dumpster divers.  Also, out in the morning of pickup (of course, in my case that's easier than for most of you:  I'm retired, the collection is around the same time every scheduled pickup, and I put it out maybe an hour before).  

However, if you shred and mix, you won't  have to worry about identity theft from that source.  Sure, it's annoying if some punks just want to throw trash around, but not worth running out naked.  

Quoted: Quoted: My city has a municiple code that says all trash in the bins belongs to the waste management company once placed in the bin. That way dumpster divers can be arrested for petty theft or attempt petty theft. Mine too, and they get especially sore when people start ripping off the "recycle" bins.

Yep the bums will clean them out to get beer money.  

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: My city has a municiple code that says all trash in the bins belongs to the waste management company once placed in the bin. That way dumpster divers can be arrested for petty theft or attempt petty theft. Mine too, and they get especially sore when people start ripping off the "recycle" bins. Yep the bums will clean them out to get beer money.

Let the bums keep their damned beer money.  It's probably the only thing that makes them feel non-suicidal.  Who does it hurt if they steal from the recycle bins?  So the city has to pick up the recycling less and saves money, the bum gets his beer, win-win.

Quoted: Ever heard of a confetti shredder? Get one. And don't take your trash to the curb until daylight. If they come on your property at night to dig through the trash, at least here in Texas, you are within your right to drop them where they stand.

Then all you have to do is convence the DA that you were right in killing the puke over something you were throwing away.

I guess if I put a hundred times in my post I wouldn't harm someone over trash and was unarmed anyway people would still tell me to write with what prison is like for killing someone. So for the last time ...no one would have gotten drawn down on....i wasn't armed to begin with only letting these guys know I saw them. I'm glad to see that some of you think I don't deserve to have firearms even though there wasn't one involved in this story.It's being made to sound like I was totally in the wrong about wanting to know what two guys were doing in my trash in the middle of the night. I've been hunting for about 30 years and have held an Indiana carry permit since 1988. Never had a firearms related issue before so I think I'l hang on to mine.

Quoted: I guess if I put a hundred times in my post I wouldn't harm someone over trash and was unarmed anyway people would still tell me to write with what prison is like for killing someone. So for the last time ...no one would have gotten drawn down on....i wasn't armed to begin with only letting these guys know I saw them. I'm glad to see that some of you think I don't deserve to have firearms even though there wasn't one involved in this story.It's being made to sound like I was totally in the wrong about wanting to know what two guys were doing in my trash in the middle of the night. I've been hunting for about 30 years and have held an Indiana carry permit since 1988. Never had a firearms related issue before so I think I'l hang on to mine.

But you start out your story by saying you were embarassed for not having a gun on you... you later said you knew you couldn't get to your gun in time.

YOU make it sound like you WOULD've "drawn down" on them, had you had the opportunity.  

Take responsibility for your own words, man.  You sound like a liberal trying to ignore the things you said that are now inconvenient to your arguement

Quoted: why chase them..... when you can catch them?!?!? www.geo-outdoors.info/icons/bear_trap_teeth_1.jpg

It's what Chuck Norris would do.
No, seriously.
I saw an episode of "Walker" once, where he caught a guy in a bear trap.
No shit,

Quoted: Quoted: Ever heard of a confetti shredder? Get one. And don't take your trash to the curb until daylight. If they come on your property at night to dig through the trash, at least here in Texas, you are within your right to drop them where they stand. That is not absolute at all............

Well the Texas penal code states that at night, it is a defense. Now you are gong to make me go look up the code. It was clearly discussed during my CHL class. Daytime, no. Darkness and on your physical property, and fearing for your life or unable to prevent theft any other way, that changes everything.

Dumpster diver or armed murderer, at night, they look the same.

It has nothing to do with the garbage and everything to do with the fact that they are tresspassing on your property under cover of darkness and may not be readily identifiable.  That and I "feared for my life" or "there was no other way to stop the theft" has resulted in many a no-bill, as it should.

Recently, in Florida, a man was cleared of wrongdoing after shooting a policeman who jumped a fence and was banging on his back door, without a warrant or proabable cause. (Admittedly, after a long and expensive) court case

Last year, in Dallas, a man was no-billed for shooting with a semi-auto AK variant at thieves who had broken into his car and were removing his stereo. This in his apartment parking lot, not even on his land, or his house.  

Yes, sometimes there is justice, despite the best efforts of the do-gooders.

Come visit my property after dark with malicious intent and see where it gets you.  
If you get past the chain link fence and the dogs, then you get to play with me.


ETA, Found it.
Here is what the Texas State penal code says.  Basically it says I can shoot them if they are stealing a flower pot at night off my porch as long as there is no other way I can stop it. It says nothing about value of the items of personal property. Section 9.41 is covered
here. The law is quite clear. Doesn't exempt you from lawsuits of course, but nothing ever does.  

*************************************************************

TEXAS PENAL CODE

CHAPTER 9. JUSTIFICATION EXCLUDING CRIMINAL RESPONSIBILITY


SUBCHAPTER D. PROTECTION OF PROPERTY


§ 9.42.  DEADLY FORCE TO PROTECT PROPERTY.  A person is
justified in using deadly force against another to protect land or
tangible, movable property:

(1)  if he would be justified in using force against the
other under Section 9.41;  and

(2)  when and to the degree he reasonably believes the
deadly force is immediately necessary:
(A)  to prevent the other's imminent commission of
arson, burglary, robbery, aggravated robbery, theft during the
nighttime, or criminal mischief during the nighttime;  or
(B)  to prevent the other who is fleeing
immediately after committing burglary, robbery, aggravated
robbery, or theft during the nighttime from escaping with the
property;  and

(3)  he reasonably believes that:                                            
(A)  the land or property cannot be protected or
recovered by any other means;  or
(B)  the use of force other than deadly force to
protect or recover the land or property would expose the actor or
another to a substantial risk of death or serious bodily injury.

Acts 1973, 63rd Leg., p. 883, ch. 399, § 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1974.  
Amended by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 900, § 1.01, eff. Sept. 1,
1994.

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Quoted: My trash is on my property at the curb(it's in my driveway) and until it is mixed with common garbage it is mine. No, once at the curb, it's fair game. It's TRASH, dude. The police have to have a search warrant for your trash. No, they don't. Neither does anyone else who wants it. Once it's mixed with everyone elses trash it's common property. Can someone take my trash can whenever they want because it's at the curb? YES Those cans are my property no matter where they are at. If someone steals my personal info and destroys my credit that would be bad also. I also own my car and park it every where but would be upset if someone stole it. I also wouldn't have shot anyone over garbage. Smart decision, because you'd be facing murder charges if you did. I would probably want a gun in my hand if some shady guy was just standing at the curb eyeing my house at 345 am. Agreed. I mean the dude was at my house in a darkened blacked out pickup. You mean a dark colored pickup with the lights off? He was obviously going through every ones trash and I'm sure it wasn't for recyclables. Who knows what he's looking for. If he gets your personal info, that's your own fault. He doesn't commit a crime by taking it out of your garbage pile. Once he uses it fradulently, then it's a crime. The Sherriff Sheriff even said this is a common way identity theives steal info. You can learn an amazing amount about a person through their trash. Won't find any personal info in MY trash. Have at it whenever you want. You can probably use it to figure out what kind of soup I like. He also stated that if they had been caught it would have constituted theft for the reasons I stated above. It's not theft Once again my trash is in my driveway at the curb. They were ON MY PROPERTY when they were attempting to steal whatever could be of value to them.I would have kept them right there for the cops if I could have. The only thing I would change is I would be clothed and armed.

Now that you've been informed that you're wrong, you might consider getting and using a shredder properly. Or use your fireplace to get rid of unneeded papers w/ personal info. If you don't want anyone going through your garbage, drag it out when you see the garbage trucks coming down your block in the morning.

You never had any need for a gun in the scenario that you described in your opening post in this thread.  I will be the one millionth person to say this:  "don't throw any personal information in your garbage", and you won't have any reason to need a gun when somebody goes through your trash.  I am not ashamed to admit that I have been known to take things from people's garbage piles on the curb, and if I had ever been threatened with a gun my first stop would have been the police station.

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: My city has a municiple code that says all trash in the bins belongs to the waste management company once placed in the bin. That way dumpster divers can be arrested for petty theft or attempt petty theft. Mine too, and they get especially sore when people start ripping off the "recycle" bins. Yep the bums will clean them out to get beer money.   Let the bums keep their damned beer money.  It's probably the only thing that makes them feel non-suicidal.  Who does it hurt if they steal from the recycle bins?

The waste management company that the recyclables belong to.