What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? California
Hello! I'm really glad I found this site and look forward to any advice/clarification on this matter.
About a week ago, I lost my wallet getting off of public transportation in San Francisco. Miraculously, the person that picked it up went out of her way to contact me. The contents of my wallet: driver's license, credit card, debit card, some cash and a Costco card (which she used to find out how to contact me). She arranged for me to meet her at her work when she got off. This correspondence happened around 2 in the afternoon. She told me to meet her at 6:00 when she got off. I responded (via text) that I would be there early and for her to let me know when she was out. To this she responded "sounds good".
I arrived at 5:30 and waited until 7:00. She never showed. When I contacted her again to check on her status, she told me she had already left and if I could meet her next week. As it had been about a week since I had my wallet, I asked her if it was okay if she could either drop it off at the closest police station, mail it to me or let me pick it up the next day (I told her I would pay for any postage and give her a reward no matter which method it was). To this she never replied. She stopped replying all together.
CA Penal Code 485 states:
One who finds lost property under circumstances which give him
knowledge of or means of inquiry as to the true owner, and who
appropriates such property to his own use, or to the use of another
person not entitled thereto, without first making reasonable and just
efforts to find the owner and to restore the property to him, is
guilty of theft.
My question is, does her initial effort count as "reasonable and just
efforts to find the owner and to restore the property to him"?
Hello! I'm really glad I found this site and look forward to any advice/clarification on this matter.
About a week ago, I lost my wallet getting off of public transportation in San Francisco. Miraculously, the person that picked it up went out of her way to contact me. The contents of my wallet: driver's license, credit card, debit card, some cash and a Costco card (which she used to find out how to contact me). She arranged for me to meet her at her work when she got off. This correspondence happened around 2 in the afternoon. She told me to meet her at 6:00 when she got off. I responded (via text) that I would be there early and for her to let me know when she was out. To this she responded "sounds good".
I arrived at 5:30 and waited until 7:00. She never showed. When I contacted her again to check on her status, she told me she had already left and if I could meet her next week. As it had been about a week since I had my wallet, I asked her if it was okay if she could either drop it off at the closest police station, mail it to me or let me pick it up the next day (I told her I would pay for any postage and give her a reward no matter which method it was). To this she never replied. She stopped replying all together.
CA Penal Code 485 states:
One who finds lost property under circumstances which give him
knowledge of or means of inquiry as to the true owner, and who
appropriates such property to his own use, or to the use of another
person not entitled thereto, without first making reasonable and just
efforts to find the owner and to restore the property to him, is
guilty of theft.
My question is, does her initial effort count as "reasonable and just
efforts to find the owner and to restore the property to him"?
