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Criminal Redistribution of Stolen Property: The Need for Law Reform

1976; University of Michigan Law School; Volume: 74; Issue: 8 Linguagem: Inglês

10.2307/1287992

1939-8557

G. Robert Blakey, Michael Goldsmith,

Property Rights and Legal Doctrine

Our society is permeated by a consciousness of theft: triple-locked doors of city apartments, guard dogs prowling stores and warehouses at night, retail prices and insurance rates based on the assumption that large quantities of merchandise are simply going to disappear.But our consciousness of theft tends to be limited.It is easy to imagine the act itself-the forced lock or smashed window in the dead of night, the hijacker ordering the driver out of his truck cab at pistol point.It is harder to keep in mind that these acts aren't random or self-contained but are usually practical ways of acquiring goods for an established buyer.As for the dealer in stolen goods-the "fence" -there our imagination seldom goes beyond the owner of a seedy pawnshop or the character who sidles up on the street and mutters, "Hey buddy, wanna buy a watch?" 1 T HE development of sophisticated fencing systems for the sale of stolen property to consumers has paralleled the industrialization of society.Although crimes against property and attempts to control them have ancient origins, 2 most theft before the Industrial Revolution was committed for immediate consumption by the thieves and their accomplices rather than for redistribution in the marketplace.3 Society's small population, inadequate transportation and