When is it a crime to take “abandoned” property?

 

Suppose you are in a public place, and you encounter a lost item. You would really like to keep it, but you are not sure if you are legally allowed to do so. If you leave the item, surely another person will come along and claim it for themselves. Right? However, if you take the item, you may run the risk of being charged with a crime, especially if the owner comes looking for it.

Taking another person’s property without permission is larceny. In Michigan, larceny may be a misdemeanor punishable by up to 93 days in jail. In other circumstances, larceny may be a felony punishable by many years in prison. Generally, larceny is defined by the following elements:

1. The accused person took someone else’s property.
2. The property was taken without consent.
3. There was some movement of the property.
4. At the time the property was taken, the accused person intended to permanently deprive the owner of the property.
5. The property had some value. M Crim JI 23.1

 

But what if the property was abandoned by its previous owner? If the property was truly abandoned by its previous owner, it is not a crime for another person to take it. However, before you rely on this concept, you should tread carefully.

The Michigan Court of Appeals has defined the concept of abandoned property:

“The abandonment of property refers to the voluntary relinquishment thereof by its owner of holder, with the intention of terminating his or her owner, with the intention of terminating his or her ownership, possession, and control, and without vesting ownership in any other person. Abandoned property belongs to no one, and the first person to take possession acquires ownership.” People v Thorne, 322 Mich App 340 (2017)

Therefore, property can rightly be considered abandoned only if:

1. The prior owner voluntarily relinquished it (i.e., decided that they did not want it anymore),
2. The prior owner intended to give up their right to own or possess the property, AND
3. The prior owner did not give it to someone else.

In Thorne, the defendant (a casino patron) took another patron’s credit slip from a slot machine after the other patron got up to use the restroom. The defendant was later charged with larceny in a building. The defendant claimed that she was not guilty because she believed the other patron had abandoned the credit slip. The Court of Appeals disagreed. The court noted that the credit slip had a value of $40, that it was being used by the other casino patron moments before it was taken, the defendant took the slip immediately after the other patron walked away, and the defendant denied taking the slip when confronted about it. All of these facts suggested to the court that the defendant did not honestly believe that the other patron had abandoned her right to the slip.

 

So, how do we apply these principles to our hypothetical lost item?

First, the best reaction is to say that if you find property that is not yours, leave it be or turn it into the appropriate authority. However, if you truly believe it is abandoned, and decide to take it anyway, consider the following questions:

1. Does it appear to have any real value? For example, if you find a penny on the ground, it is probably reasonable to assume that its owner has no intention of coming to look for it. However, if you find a $100 bill on the ground, that is a different story entirely.

 

2. Did you see who “abandoned” it? If you see money falling from a person’s pocket as they are putting their wallet away, it is unlikely that they intended to relinquish the money. If you see a small amount of money lying on the ground, and it appears to have been laying there for a while with no one coming to claim it, it might be more reasonable to conclude that it has been abandoned.

 

3. Does the property identify its owner in some way? If you find a wallet with a credit, debit, or EBT card, or something else with a person’s name on it, it is very unlikely that they abandoned the property. However, a dingy wallet with nothing more than couple of loose knickknacks might reasonably be considered abandoned.

 

4. Do the overall circumstances really cause you to believe that the property has been abandoned? If you find an older-looking television sitting next to a person’s garbage can on trash day, you might reasonably conclude that it is abandoned. If you find a nice new television on the person’s front porch in an Amazon box, it is probably not abandoned property.

If you find property that you would like to keep, there is a good chance that its owner would like to keep it as well. If you decide to take it anyway, be prepared to defend your belief that it was abandoned and be prepared to give it back immediately if you find out you were wrong.

If you are charged with larceny or any other crime, regardless of the circumstances, you need legal representation. Kershaw, Vititoe & Jedinak, PLC is prepared to defend your rights in court. Please contact us promptly to schedule a consultation!