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Felony rap for stealing copper wire hasn't stopped thefts

By Gritsforbreakfast

Laws increasing criminal penalties tend to be a one-way ratchet; they only get harsher, they're seldom reduced.An example that will likely be with us for a while is the new law making theft of metal wire a state jail felony - one of House Criminal Jurisprudence Chairman Aaron Peña's many pet enhancements last session. Peña's bill made stealing copper, aluminum or bronze wire a felony regardless of the value of the wire! But the law apparently failed to scare away would-be copper thieves as its proponents predicted.I say that because on Wednesday afternoon, the lights went out in the Grits household, shutting down all computer equipment (I lost a half-finished blog post, actually), lights, washing machine, and everything else in the house. Looking outside, I quickly realized the whole neighborhood had gone dark...continue to full post

Full post as published by Grits for Breakfast on February 29, 2008 (boomark / email).