Electric Car Owner Arrested For Stealing 5 Cents Of Power

Just saying, "Hey, please top that" can solve a lot of situations.
And yes, I can agree with this.

But I also understand it wasn't the cop on cite at the moment who did anything to him beyond complete the report on the call and they do have to do that. Maybe the cop could have fudged his report alittle, left something out. Maybe for someone else he would have and maybe this guy was a little smart assed in talking to the cop so the cop just did his job as required. We don't know.

But seeing how the cop didn't shoot him, tase him, beat him with his stick, just did his job and completed his report, I don't see any reason to hold the cop as being unreasonable. As for whoever actually decided to file the charges, the Sheriff or County DA, again, we don't know why. I suppose they will get to the bottom of it in court.
 
Of course it costs money. The guy was arrested at his home, taken to the station and booked. Plus the full police report and all the paperwork that goes with it. That's time and money that could be used solving real crimes.
 
How much did this arrest cost? How many cops were involved, and for how many hours? How much is that time worth? How much did it cost to process and imprison him for 15 hours? How much did it cost to process him back out? How much did the filing of charges cost?

Take all that, and compare it to a nickel, and then please get a goddamned clue. Your attitude is why we're 17 trillion in debt and climbing.

But the opposite is also part of the same big picture, the idea that we shouldn't bother with the little stuff, it just encourages more that is worse. Being too lenient, letting them off, they aren't going to do anything.

Don't chaser a speeding biker, it's too dangerous. It's right, it is, but you still have to find a way to catch him or they will all just keep being too dangerous and it will cause other problems, get others killed or hurt.

There is a middle ground somewhere and that's where they have to try and find the balance. This story sounds like it's all on one far side and completely unreasonable but there is missing information and it's information that could make a difference. I don't have it, I don't think you do either, but this story makes the cops look really unreasonable and although you might want to side with the idea that they are just over the top goose steppers, I see the missing information and at least consider that maybe they have more justification for their actions then they are going to let on and maybe they are not so unjustified as it looks.
 
But the opposite is also part of the same big picture, the idea that we shouldn't bother with the little stuff, it just encourages more that is worse. Being too lenient, letting them off, they aren't going to do anything.

The cops shouldn't be involved in petty little disputes like this unless both parties are unable to come to a resolution. In this case, the party that was "harmed" was not even talked to by the cops. The cops should have been nowhere near this until a school official contacted the electric car dick and attempted to resolve the issue.

Once again...we do not need government agents handling every single issue in our lives. It's expensive, inefficient, and increasingly turns us into a dependent society with no ability to deal with our problems on our own.
 
The cops shouldn't be involved in petty little disputes like this unless both parties are unable to come to a resolution. In this case, the party that was "harmed" was not even talked to by the cops. The cops should have been nowhere near this until a school official contacted the electric car dick and attempted to resolve the issue.

Once again...we do not need government agents handling every single issue in our lives. It's expensive, inefficient, and increasingly turns us into a dependent society with no ability to deal with our problems on our own.

It's also insulting.
 
Zarathustra[H];1040437416 said:
Indirectly, yes, but that doesn't mean it is his - or any of ours - to do with as he pleases.

The example someone used above was perfect.

Try walking out of a public park with a park bench, and see how well that goes.

The tax funds are used for a very specific purpose, and can not be unilaterally appropriated by individuals.

One of the parks in my town has some lights that you can turn on and off yourself. If I turn them on, I'm using electricity. Is it theft? It is illegal to be in the park after sundown unless you have rented it out.

The answer is if you don't want anyone using your external outlets, get locking covers. It might add up to something you give a crap about long term, but any individual infraction isn't worth patrolling or arresting anyone for just due to the math.
 
Come to think of it, if the school is that hell bent on people not using their electricity why do they have outlets available to the public? If it's code to have outside outlets then they could just turn off the breaker and turn it on only if needed. It's like a secretary leaving candy on a reception desk, it may be their desk but it's still out in the open and it's welcoming and it is assumed that they are for everyone.
 
Overkill and hypocritical. I'm sure more taxpayer funds were wasted beyond 5 cents to arrest and prosecute him.
 
Anyone that says they have never heard of utility theft before regarding electrical outlets in public places, I have heard about it here before, but I know the cops here don't arrest or cite, they tend to just chase the people away (in public parks or from schools). On our main street running through town, every light post has outlets, normally they are used during the holidays for the Christmas "Holiday" lights, or under the year they may be used for something like a public display of some art work, but most of the time you see tourists or the homeless sitting there charging their phones, notebooks or tablets (yes, we have do gooders around here that give the freaken homeless tablets) and no one does a thing about it.
 
Once again...we do not need government agents handling every single issue in our lives. It's expensive, inefficient, and increasingly turns us into a dependent society with no ability to deal with our problems on our own.

This I agree with, but as long as lawyers rule can you see a change coming?
 
I just started checking out the city itself, pretty small, less then 10,000 in the 2010 census. Now it seems to be booming, pop was up to almost 16,000 by 2012, that's really a huge increase in a very short time.

It sits just inside the 285 loop of Atlanta, it's a suburb just off the beaten track.
 
Has anyone actually read the article?

If you read the article it states that the guy that got arrested was not allowed to be on the tennis courts. The man's son does not attend that school. The man does not live in that city he lives in Decatur.

The man was their taking Tennis lessons, the school had warned him he was not allowed to take tennis lessons on the property at any time without the permission of the school etc and was told not to come back and take lessons on that property.

The officer responded to a complaint that was dialed in via 911 (im sure by an over jealous school representative or person). The officer arrived on the scene and started to search the car since the car door was unlocked (if thats allowed I am no expert). While he was doing this the guy who was giving lessons (the tennis insturctor) told the police officer that the vehicle in question belonged to the guy he was giving lessons too.

When the officer went to talk to that person he was a royal asshole to the cop and then even accused him of damaging his car door etc, which the damage was visible on the officers dash cam when he pulled up.

The officer stated that had he not been accused of damaging the mans vehicle and had the man not been an asshole he would not have submitted a report. When the report was investigated the school reported that the man had been warned to stay off the property thats when they went to his house and arrested him.

So the man telling news anchors he was their for his sons tennis game is blatently lieing. We further know this by him saying "no one was their to ask Saturday Morning" for permission. Think about that for a second, if a school UIL event or team event is held at a school there are going to be school representatives their. So based on the officers report and his own comments the man was an asshole that could of just said sorry and it would appear a liar as well.

I hope the police department sues the man for defamation and whatever else they can and the officer as well.

All this is clearly explained in the article.

-R
 
Has anyone actually read the article?

"Wednesday evening, Chamblee City Manager and Police Chief Marc Johnson issued the following statement:"

That statement(the one from the police department) was not there at the time I originally read the article, and I imagine that's the case for most of the people who replied as well.
 
The cops actions were system sustaining:

... I could demonstrate to you that every single bank robbery, that in every single case, practically, the cost of the police was more than the actual money that the robbers took from the bank. Does that mean, 'Oh, you see, there's really no economic interest involved, then. They're not protecting the banks. The police are just doing this because they're on a power trip, or they're macho, or they're control freaks, that's why they do it.' No! Of course it's an economic... of course they're defending the banks. Of course, because if they didn't stop that bank robbery, regardless of the cost, this could jeopardize the entire banking system. You see, there are people who believe that the function of the police is to fight crime. And that's not true; the function of the police is social control and protection of property.
 
Has anyone actually read the article?

Yes we did, although the details that we all made accurate assumptions about apparently were just added.

That police statement sure clears it up. This guy got what he deserved. Treat people like assholes and don't act shocked when they treat you the same.
 
The surprising part of the story for me was how he got arrested at home and locked up for 15 hours. What the hell is the point of that?

I live in Canada, and we have things called Promise to Appear forms. The Police Officer IDs you, writes up a PTA form with a court date on it. On that date, you have your trial for "theft" and if guilty, pay the fine or whatever the penalty is. This way they don't waste people's time at the jail processing someone who isn't a risk to society. If you don't show up to the trial, then an arrest warrant is issued.
 
One of the parks in my town has some lights that you can turn on and off yourself. If I turn them on, I'm using electricity. Is it theft? It is illegal to be in the park after sundown unless you have rented it out.

So the intent of those lights is so you can turn them on and off yourself when you want/need to?
Is the intent of external outlets at a school so that people can charge their cars there?

Come to think of it, if the school is that hell bent on people not using their electricity why do they have outlets available to the public? If it's code to have outside outlets then they could just turn off the breaker and turn it on only if needed.

If they're on a separate breaker from everything else. If they're not, they can't.

I live near enough to a school that I could probably plug into their external outlets and run my entire house. At the very least I could charge my electric car (had I one) 24 hours a day. Are you really saying that that is legal, and not theft?
 
Cop: Did you ask administration if you could plug-in?
Man: No.
Cop: Technically this is utility theft. I have to ask you to unplug your car until you get permission.
Man: OK.

The guy shouldn't have kept the car plugged in. If everyone could just pull up to the school and charge their cars, there would be an issue as well. In my opinion, its better to have one guy upset he can't charge his car than deal with the crap storm of "I've been plugging my car in here for 6 months. Why are you telling me I can't?!"

That said, arresting the guy is using a sledgehammer to drive a nail. This could have been handled much differently.



Walk into a park and walk out with a bench. You'll be arrested for theft.

I agree with you to an extent but I don't believe people take trips with the idea of planning out schools to charge their cars at, or maybe they do, but I just can't see that. I think it was a huge overreaction and the cop could have given him a warning/citation. That's all that needed to be done.

It looks like a total abuse of power and a huge waste of taxpayer money, more so than the theft of electricity.
 
Yes we did, although the details that we all made accurate assumptions about apparently were just added.

That police statement sure clears it up. This guy got what he deserved. Treat people like assholes and don't act shocked when they treat you the same.


Yes, with the further information supplied, the guy got what he deserved.
 
How much did this arrest cost? How many cops were involved, and for how many hours? How much is that time worth? How much did it cost to process and imprison him for 15 hours? How much did it cost to process him back out? How much did the filing of charges cost?

Take all that, and compare it to a nickel, and then please get a goddamned clue. Your attitude is why we're 17 trillion in debt and climbing.

I agree with this completely. THe fact that prison funding, city budgets, fire fighters and police funding are cut yet we'll arrest someone for stealing electricity? Does that make any sense at all? Are you kidding me?
 
I agree with you to an extent but I don't believe people take trips with the idea of planning out schools to charge their cars at, or maybe they do, but I just can't see that. I think it was a huge overreaction and the cop could have given him a warning/citation. That's all that needed to be done.

It looks like a total abuse of power and a huge waste of taxpayer money, more so than the theft of electricity.

Most schools have facilities that are in public use. It could easily add up. Teachers come to work and fight over charging spots. After school parents and coaches charge at sports events and after school activities. Then you have all the people who live near a school that might be close enough to abuse it. The elementary school and a church near me are both surrounded by homes. Anyone from one of those homes could decide to just start parking his car at on of those buildings and charging over night. Making a short walk home is nothing. We just live in a time when that stuff isn't common so we have some social cheaters who are hoping that people won't mind, but eventually if electric cars grow some form of standard etiquette will become common place and most likely their will be some sort of validation to allow a person to charge much like paying for a parking spot.
 
I agree with this completely. THe fact that prison funding, city budgets, fire fighters and police funding are cut yet we'll arrest someone for stealing electricity? Does that make any sense at all? Are you kidding me?

You people have no idea about how a minor "misdemeanor" works. He will never see a prison cell for a sentence other than the 15 hours or so he was detained. He will be sentenced to a fine which will pay for the costs of prosecution. The waste of the police resources wasn't arresting this guy. The waste of resources was the person who called 911 because the guy had a power cord plugged into the building and his car. Likely it was reported as a "suspicious vehicle" and police take that seriously at a school.

If you read the article, the police were dispatched because of a 911 call to the scene. The guy was being a dick to the police. He had been told not to be on the property several times because he was interfering with school activities (playing tennis when the courts were needed and he didn't even have kids at that school). He accused them of damaging his car (which was not the case as observed on camera). How much he "stole" is irrelevant because a theft is a theft. The amount is only relevant when grading the crime. In this case, it will be a minor misdemeanor. The Sgt. sums it up perfectly, Mr. Kamooneh had been advised that he was not allowed on the property without permission. Had he complied with that notice none of this would have occurred.

This is a case of "nothing to see here, move along."
 
Basically, the guy was a dick and utility theft is the only thing the cops could get him on. Still seems a dick move and an abuse of power.
 
Basically, the guy was a dick and utility theft is the only thing the cops could get him on. Still seems a dick move and an abuse of power.

Not necessarily...the fact that he was asked to leave and kept coming back is grounds for criminal trespass.
 
The Sgt. sums it up perfectly, Mr. Kamooneh had been advised that he was not allowed on the property without permission. Had he complied with that notice none of this would have occurred.

That's basically how I see it. Save the outrage for when something genuinely bad is happening. The guy shouldn't have been there and when told he shouldn't be there, he should have just left. Even it it's a minor offense, that doesn't give you the right to disregard it.
 
IMHO unwarranted but justified. With the rise in EV apparent by current buying trends, energy theft is going to be a huge problem - especially as the number of EVs rise.

This is akin to siphoning gasoline. Not a huge deal now, not even worth the cost to legislate it... But this is eventually going to be a huge issue of EVs take off.
 
You do know that electricity from the utilities is not stored, so unused electricity is wasted.
Bla ha ha ha ha ha

ummmm NO.

Increased demand creates increased demand to the substation. This has to be countered by the generation and step down facility. This means you have to run more turbines or increase the amount of force going through that turbine which drives the generator.

Increased demand also increases wear on the generating components causing premature wear.
 
BTW: No he shouldn't have been arrested.

But most of you are appalling assessment that just because it's from the government it's free. I see the "Gimme generation" is in full swing. God help us.

What if gasoline were sitting outside? Would it be okay if he took that? After all the school has plenty of that sitting there for equipment.

For you mofo's who think this should be free, give me your home address, I'm coming over and hooking up my 5000 watt stereo system to your house. Obviously you have money to burn.

Parks/water are intended to be used by the public and are budgeted for such.
 
This is a case of "nothing to see here, move along."

Ahh yeah you're right. I must have misread the part of where he was warned about being on the tennis court during school hours. That was my fault. I just re-read that. I take back what I said now!
 
I didn't read all the post here so don't know if this was brought up or not. But the article was updated tonight with more information. The reason they decided to press charges is that he was on the school property without permission to begin with.

The report made its way to Sgt Ford's desk for a follow up investigation. He contacted the middle school and inquired of several administrative personnel whether the individual had permission to use power. He was advised no. Sgt. Ford showed a photo to the school resource officer who recognized Mr. Kamooneh. Sgt Ford was further advised that Mr. Kamooneh had previously been advised he was not allowed on the school tennis courts without permission from the school . This was apparently due to his interfering with the use of the tennis courts previously during school hours.

Based upon the totality of these circumstances and without any expert advice on the amount of electricity that may have been used, Sgt Ford signed a theft warrant. The warrant was turned over to the DeKalb Sheriffs Dept for service because the individual lived in Decatur, not Chamblee. This is why he was arrested at a later time.

I am sure that Sgt. Ford was feeling defensive when he said a theft is a theft and he would do it again. Ultimately, Sgt. Ford did make the decision to pursue the theft charges, but the decision was based on Mr. Kamooneh having been advised that he was not allowed on the property without permission. Had he complied with that notice none of this would have occurred. Mr. Kamooneh's son is not a student at the middle school and he was not the one playing tennis. Mr. Kamooneh was taking lessons himself

So his son was NOT a student at this school, he has been told to stay off the school grounds, and did not listen. It is his own fault for all of this.
 
You people have no idea about how a minor "misdemeanor" works. He will never see a prison cell for a sentence other than the 15 hours or so he was detained. He will be sentenced to a fine which will pay for the costs of prosecution. The waste of the police resources wasn't arresting this guy. The waste of resources was the person who called 911 because the guy had a power cord plugged into the building and his car. Likely it was reported as a "suspicious vehicle" and police take that seriously at a school.

If you read the article, the police were dispatched because of a 911 call to the scene. The guy was being a dick to the police. He had been told not to be on the property several times because he was interfering with school activities (playing tennis when the courts were needed and he didn't even have kids at that school). He accused them of damaging his car (which was not the case as observed on camera). How much he "stole" is irrelevant because a theft is a theft. The amount is only relevant when grading the crime. In this case, it will be a minor misdemeanor. The Sgt. sums it up perfectly, Mr. Kamooneh had been advised that he was not allowed on the property without permission. Had he complied with that notice none of this would have occurred.

This is a case of "nothing to see here, move along."

I don't know when the article was updated, but before tonight, it was left out that he was on the school grounds, and that's it. No mention of previously being on the school grounds, or confrontations or anything other than that he had his car plugged in.

Since the update though, yea, he needed to be taken out of the premises. And based on the new info, he was being a dick, which was not mentioned before. So I agree with his arrest now, maybe even jail time for lying about his vehicle being damaged, trespassing, etc.
 
Ahh yeah you're right. I must have misread the part of where he was warned about being on the tennis court during school hours. That was my fault. I just re-read that. I take back what I said now!

I guess they updated the article with more info recently.
 
I only read the first 19 replies to this story....did ANY of you bother to even read the damn linked story AT ALL? The Cop was in the right...this douche-bag was in the wrong...

1) This jack-ass wasnt at his son`s school...he was there for tennis lessons for himself

2) This jack-ass was argumentative with the officer in question when confronted about the issue

3) This jack-ass had previously had issues at this same school for parking there when school was in session and causing a disturbance at the tennis courts...

4) There was a 911 call/tip that keyed the Police into the theft taking place. This Cop was doing exactly what he is being paid to do.

All of this is in the linked article..."Mr. Kamooneh having been advised that he was not allowed on the property without permission. Had he complied with that notice none of this would have occurred. Mr. Kamooneh's son is not a student at the middle school and he was not the one playing tennis. Mr. Kamooneh was taking lessons himself."
 
I only read the first 19 replies to this story....did ANY of you bother to even read the damn linked story AT ALL? The Cop was in the right...this douche-bag was in the wrong...

1) This jack-ass wasnt at his son`s school...he was there for tennis lessons for himself

2) This jack-ass was argumentative with the officer in question when confronted about the issue

3) This jack-ass had previously had issues at this same school for parking there when school was in session and causing a disturbance at the tennis courts...

4) There was a 911 call/tip that keyed the Police into the theft taking place. This Cop was doing exactly what he is being paid to do.

All of this is in the linked article..."Mr. Kamooneh having been advised that he was not allowed on the property without permission. Had he complied with that notice none of this would have occurred. Mr. Kamooneh's son is not a student at the middle school and he was not the one playing tennis. Mr. Kamooneh was taking lessons himself."

The article was updated tonight, that stuff wasn't in there when people first started to reply to this. That update makes a HUGE change to the story. originally they were painting the guy as a victim being arrested over basically nothing. Now with the update, everything seems justified 100%
 
I only read the first 19 replies to this story....did ANY of you bother to even read the damn linked story AT ALL? The Cop was in the right...this douche-bag was in the wrong...

I believe the stuff at the bottom was added later. If you note, they say "Wednesday evening" the statement was made, but there's comments on the article dating back to Tuesday evening... so the original article did not include that statement.
 
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