Seattle City Council Considers Allowing People to Steal 'Legally' For the Right Reasons - Granite Grok

Seattle City Council Considers Allowing People to Steal ‘Legally’ For the Right Reasons

Seattle

Seattle is the gift the keeps on giving. They’re all bad gifts, but they come with important lessons. These are the things liberals do when they have no fear of political consequences. What is it this time? It would not be illegal to steal if you are “poor.”


Related: Defund-Seattle Social Worker Stabbed to Death by Enraged Client


The Seattle City Council is considering new legislation that would create a legal loophole that would make substance addiction, mental illness or poverty a valid legal defense for nearly all misdemeanor crimes committed in the city.

If approved, the ordinance would excuse and dismiss — essentially legalizing — almost all misdemeanor crimes committed in Seattle by offenders who could show either:

  • Symptoms of addiction without being required to provide a medical diagnosis;
  • Symptoms of a mental disorder; or
  • Poverty and the crime was committed to meet an “immediate and basic need.” For example, if a defendant argued they stole merchandise to sell for cash in order to purchase food, clothes or was trying to scrape together enough money for rent. The accused could not be convicted.

They have not requested or accepted public input yet (I wonder why), but small business owners can’t be happy. You get your riot-sanctioned burned-out business back on its feet, and now this? It’s not exactly an invitation to create jobs, which does what?

It makes for more poor people who can steal. Steal what?

“[King County Department of Public Defense Director, Anita] Khandelwal said the legislation should not include any restrictions, monetary or otherwise, and jurors should be allowed to decide.”

This is a conversation about an actual ordinance. An as yet to be approved foot in the door to what appears to be a license to steal whatever you want and sell it for cash—legalized theft and fencing.

The proposal would allow for the dismissal of crimes of poverty and it would do so by revising the definition of duress as a defense against prosecution.

If you get caught and actually end up in front of a judge or jury, they will get to decide if your poverty defense or mental health defense, or addiction are suitable grounds for letting you do it again.

There is no incentive to create jobs or to have a job and the Left – in love with its welfare state – gets to make it even bigger.

If you think Seattle is not the only place where Democrats would consider this, you’d be kidding yourselves.

Exit Question: I wonder what insurance companies think about this? If it passes, will job creators in Seattle even be able to get policies? Will Seattle pass another law forcing them to issue? And why the hell would anyone want to deal with any of that? None I can think of.

G’bye Seattle.

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