# Jolly gator boat ramp theft



## Brett

time to get out the ghillie suit and the video cam
a little anonymous video for the local constabulary


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## TomFL

Me, I'm a purist. I always look for the simplest, fastest way to solve a problem. 

Do the same thing again, but once you launch your boat, go 200 yards down stream from the ramp and beach it. Walk back to the edge of the woods on the parking lot and sit and wait. 

Bring something big, long and hard that you can swing well.  

Plan "B" is to leave one guy behind, hiding in the truck if you've got tinted windows (preferrably the truck's owner). When the thug breaks into the truck, stick something that goes bang up his nose and take an extra second to ask him if he's ever heard of the castle doctrine.... 

That should be the end of the problems. 

-T


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## TomFL

> time to get out the ghillie suit and the video cam
> a little anonymous video for the local constabulary


That won't get you anywhere, but a pissed-off felon targeting your house. Trust me. The guy at my local marina has 33...yup, 33 convictions for everything from theft to organized fraud. He's still out walking the streets. 

-T


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## Gator_Bob

I feel for ya. I highly recomend that everyone get a concealed weapons permit so you can legally carry some protection in the car(or truck). Just remember that you cannot shoot someone while they are breaking into your car. You have to wait until they are in! Also make da_m sure that the bullet enters the front and exits the back and a throw down doesn't hurt.


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## REELKEEN

> I feel for ya.  I highly recomend that everyone get a concealed weapons permit so you can legally carry some protection in the car(or truck).  Just remember that you cannot shoot someone while they are breaking into your car.  You have to wait until they are in!  Also make da_m sure that the bullet enters the front and exits the back and a throw down doesn't hurt.


You don't have to have a concealed weapons permit to keep a firearm in your vehicle.  Just on your person.  

Statute says for keeping it in your vehicle:
"It is lawful to possess a concealed firearm for self-defense or other lawful purposes within the interior of a private conveyance, without a license, if the firearm is securely encased or is otherwise not readily accessible for immediate use. A firearm other than a handgun may be carried anywhere in a private conveyance when such firearm is being carried for a lawful use. This exemption does not authorize the carrying of a firearm concealed on the person."

Only in this situation if you had one in your car you would be out a GPS Ipod and a pistol.


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## JRyanL

These are great ways to catch a criminal in the act...and get shot in doing so. Try calling the police. Enough people complain and they will set up there own scenario to catch the "Boat Ramp Burglar".


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## Gator_Bob

Thats why I why l have the gun on me So they don't steal it out of the car. Calling the police is a good idea but what gets me is the court system that lets these scum bags out after a few months!


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## el9surf

Sorry to hear that. When I pulled into my parking spot the other day I saw glass all over the ground. I was wondering who the unlucky person was.


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## mark_gardner

> Me, I'm a purist. I always look for the simplest, fastest way to solve a problem.
> 
> Do the same thing again, but once you launch your boat, go 200 yards down stream from the ramp and beach it. Walk back to the edge of the woods on the parking lot and sit and wait.
> 
> Bring something big, long and hard that you can swing well.
> 
> Plan "B" is to leave one guy behind, hiding in the truck if you've got tinted windows (preferrably the truck's owner). When the thug breaks into the truck, stick something that goes bang up his nose and take an extra second to ask him if he's ever heard of the castle doctrine....
> 
> That should be the end of the problems.
> 
> -T


i like this idea best .... a good ol' fashion beat down is in order


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## tom_in_orl

OK, gotta ask. Did you report it to the police?


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## fishhawk

X2 on the beat down, make sure you use aluminum bat they sound pretty cool upon impact of something round and soft.


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## lemaymiami

Down here in paradise.... All of the vehicles at the Watson Island boat ramp (Miami) were broken into the other night....

It's enough to make you a little cranky.


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## Un-shore

> time to get out the ghillie suit and the video cam
> a little anonymous video for the local constabulary


I do like this idea but with the video cam mounted on the picatinny rail of a suppressed rifle of choice

[smiley=anim_sniper2.gif]

Nice catch, what did you catch the specs on and did you keep them?


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## hardin083

Well i dont know where to start on the things id like to do to thiefs... i think u guys pretty much covered it ...yea i notified the police just like last time my truck got broken in 2, and they were able to get some good fingerprints off the truck door so maybe..just maybe sumthin will come out of it!!!  I'm headed out there tomorrow after work to fish the econ again..this time ill be on the look out!!!  maybe i will bring them 2 justice my own way  ;D ;D... Well ill post a report tomorrow!!!


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## McFly

Well, that sucks...sorry to hear that happened to you. I go there frequently myself and never considered the threat...suppose no place is safe. Will be keeping my eye out. 

I always remove all valuables and place in dry bag while walking back down to the water...wont prevent a random break-in but if anyone was watching I hope it will discourage them.

Will say it again, thieves just suck.....


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## shallowminded

Sorry to hear about this... If you guys remember i had a 2007 15hp yamaha stolen right in front of my house. thieves  are horrible people. (for the record i never got the motor back even after i found the guys myself and notified police, this is just law enforcement at its best) 

Best of luck to you.


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## hardin083

> Sorry to hear about this... If you guys remember i had a 2007 15hp yamaha stolen right in front of my house. thieves  are horrible people. (for the record i never got the motor back even after i found the guys myself and notified police, this is just law enforcement at its best)
> 
> Best of luck to you.


thanks ill need it...im still looking for my 06 yamaha 25hp  ... that was taken right from my driveway!! And its only gona get worst with the economy!!


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## TomFL

> Sorry to hear about this... If you guys remember i had a 2007 15hp yamaha stolen right in front of my house. thieves  are horrible people. (for the record i never got the motor back even after i found the guys myself and notified police, this is just law enforcement at its best)
> 
> Best of luck to you.


You know, not to derail this whole thread but don't take lightly what I mentioned in my first response to this thread. 

Back in the old days, if you were caught stealing they broke your hand. You either learned not to steal again, or you were a masochist. Quite frankly I've never had an issue in my life that was handled better by legal means than I was able to handle myself. 

Long story but when I was a kid I mowed lawns all year to save up enough cash to buy a used dirtbike. About a week after I bought it, someone broke into my folks' garage while we were home, and stole the bike. They pushed it across the street into a sand lot, took the motor out and dumped the rest into the ditch. They left shoe prints and fingerprints on the bike. I knew who it was because the doofus down the street had a go-cart that needed a motor, and just a day or two before he told me he'd like to have the motor for his go-cart. Well we called the police and marched over to their house. While I was standing outside the door and the cops were inside, I found the pair of shoes that matched the shoe prints on the porch. They matched the size and the tread pattern. I handed them to the cop, and was told they didn't have a search warrant so they couldn't take anything or even look in the garage to see if the motor was there. To wrap the story up, the kid's dad owned a prominent concrete business in town, and next thing you know it was case closed. During this time, I was mowing the lawn across the street and the kid came over, pulled a knife on me and told me if I send the cops over there again he'd kill me. I was pretty friggin scared, lemme tell you since the kid was a lot older and bigger than I was, and he had a knife. Well my lawn customer came out of his house with a shotgun, pointed it at the bum and told him very calmly to get off his property or he was going to pull the trigger, and that if he messed with me again he'd be dead. 

That was the last time the kid messed with me. About 3 years later he was caught after he broke into another neighbor's house. He completely trashed the house, stole a gun from the house, and drove off in a stolen car. He ran from the police and threatened to shoot them.

Our society has gone soft, and it's this very type of limp-wristed authority that's paved the road. I mentioned the guy who has 33 felonies on his record, and is still out walking the streets. You mentioned above about the issues you're having. We could go on and on, but clearly there needs to be a swing towards more action and less BS. 

Hit 'em hard where it hurts and they learn not to do it. You can use force, financial means or legal means. But when they're caught, wring 'em till they squeak and they'll learn their lesson. Don't pat them on the behind and let them walk with no lasting hurt.

When people get out of jail in the morning for committing a felony, what does it teach them? It teaches them the penalty for getting caught does not outweigh the benefits gained from the crime. 

So it's a backwards learning curve. We're litterally teaching them that it's OK to be crooks.


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## el9surf

Sounds like we need some CAPITAL PUNISHMENT!

Seroiusly though in some of the Asian countries thieves are not tolerated. Only in the USA can someone get caught stealing and sue for being assaulted.


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## TomFL

> Sounds like we need some CAPITAL PUNISHMENT!
> 
> Seroiusly though in some of the Asian countries thieves are not tolerated. Only in the USA can someone get caught stealing and sue for being assaulted.


Beat him again for suing you. It's a viscous cycle.

-T


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## Gator_Bob

No joke.......as a victim YOU have no rights. The law is not set up to protect the rights of the victim, but the criminal has all kinds of protection. Many years ago someone in the legislature tried to pass some form of restitution to the victims and it was turned down. If you try to sue in civil court for your losses you cannot use the arrest and convition of the person as evidence. If you hurt the person while preventing the crime they can take you to court for their injuries, its your word against theirs and you will need a lawyer to defend yourself, figure a least $5,000. The criminal will use the " legal aid chapter" to write a complaint that gives you 21 days to respond with your lawyer. 
Like I said "make sure the bullet goes in the front and leaves the back". Dead men tell no tells.


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## FSUfisher

> Sorry to hear about this... If you guys remember i had a 2007 15hp yamaha stolen right in front of my house. thieves  are horrible people. (for the record i never got the motor back even after i found the guys myself and notified police, this is just law enforcement at its best)
> 
> Best of luck to you.
> 
> 
> 
> You know, not to derail this whole thread but don't take lightly what I mentioned in my first response to this thread.
> 
> Back in the old days, if you were caught stealing they broke your hand. You either learned not to steal again, or you were a masochist. Quite frankly I've never had an issue in my life that was handled better by legal means than I was able to handle myself.
> 
> Long story but when I was a kid I mowed lawns all year to save up enough cash to buy a used dirtbike. About a week after I bought it, someone broke into my folks' garage while we were home, and stole the bike. They pushed it across the street into a sand lot, took the motor out and dumped the rest into the ditch. They left shoe prints and fingerprints on the bike. I knew who it was because the doofus down the street had a go-cart that needed a motor, and just a day or two before he told me he'd like to have the motor for his go-cart. Well we called the police and marched over to their house. While I was standing outside the door and the cops were inside, I found the pair of shoes that matched the shoe prints on the porch. They matched the size and the tread pattern. I handed them to the cop, and was told they didn't have a search warrant so they couldn't take anything or even look in the garage to see if the motor was there. To wrap the story up, the kid's dad owned a prominent concrete business in town, and next thing you know it was case closed. During this time, I was mowing the lawn across the street and the kid came over, pulled a knife on me and told me if I send the cops over there again he'd kill me. I was pretty friggin scared, lemme tell you since the kid was a lot older and bigger than I was, and he had a knife. Well my lawn customer came out of his house with a shotgun, pointed it at the bum and told him very calmly to get off his property or he was going to pull the trigger, and that if he messed with me again he'd be dead.
> 
> That was the last time the kid messed with me. About 3 years later he was caught after he broke into another neighbor's house. He completely trashed the house, stole a gun from the house, and drove off in a stolen car. He ran from the police and threatened to shoot them.
> 
> Our society has gone soft, and it's this very type of limp-wristed authority that's paved the road. I mentioned the guy who has 33 felonies on his record, and is still out walking the streets. You mentioned above about the issues you're having. We could go on and on, but clearly there needs to be a swing towards more action and less BS.
> 
> Hit 'em hard where it hurts and they learn not to do it. You can use force, financial means or legal means. But when they're caught, wring 'em till they squeak and they'll learn their lesson. Don't pat them on the behind and let them walk with no lasting hurt.
> 
> When people get out of jail in the morning for committing a felony, what does it teach them? It teaches them the penalty for getting caught does not outweigh the benefits gained from the crime.
> 
> So it's a backwards learning curve. We're litterally teaching them that it's OK to be crooks.
Click to expand...

I agree wholeheartedly. The most I've ever had stolen from me (knock on wood) was a CB radio from my truck at spring break in PC. I was so angry and victimized I was miserable. Jail nowadays is a joke. It's more fun in there and out, and most criminals beg to go back in. I was talking to a few DOC officers this week and they feel the exact same way. They say just a few years ago their jobs were fun, as they never knew what to expect from work, and they had more freedoms to treat prisoners how they should be treated. Now said prisoners can do basically whatever they want, but the officers have to fear legal repercussions if they punish the inmates.

Maybe we're just hot-headed, but I feel we are some of the remaining true red-blooded Americans. The stuff people get away with today is sickening. Someone at work was telling me their plan to reduce career criminals: Have a bi-weekly (or so) drawing, and put all prisoners in it that have had multiple sentences (say like three or more). Whoever wins the drawing is the lucky one to go out to the gun range to practice with the officers. They don't come back. This simple plan would eliminate prison overcrowding and also probably make some people straighten up.

I also agree with Gator Bob. Dead people don't talk.

Don't tread on me!


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## Mike_Poczik

Till the judges stop the frivelous lawsuits and start protecting the citizens and not the criminals it won't change. And yes dead men can't talk.


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## DuckNut

> Just remember that you cannot shoot someone while they are breaking into your car. You have to wait until they are in! Also make da_m sure that the bullet enters the front and exits the back and a throw down doesn't hurt.


.

Not to be a stickler but this is incorrect. In Florida and other states if you feel you are in danger of being harmed you do not have to flee - you can stand your ground and fight. That also means to use deadly force. It does not only pertain to your house, it pertains to ANYWHERE that you have a legal right to be. In a car, on the sidewalk, in a park, on a Gheenoe, etc. It is the Florida Castle Doctrine signed into law by Jeb Bush on April 25, 2005 and effective October 1, 2005 (SB-436).


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## Gator_Bob

Just to clarify my earlier statment about not shooting while someone is breaking in to your car. If you come up on someone who is in the process of breaking in you cannot start shooting right away. You can not say "stop or I will shoot you". You can say "stop I have a gun". Its when they turn around and notice you (attack you) you can get a bead on them through the gun sights. The police will always do an investigation in a shooting. The first thing they look at is the direction of the bullets. Tough to convince the police it was selfdefence when the thief was shoot in the back.


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## choppercity47

Better to take out a window and a gps than steal the whole truck! sucks though I know what it feels like to have your stuff stolen, I always pray my frontier is still sitting there at the little dirt ramp in NSB because it goes empty for hours at a time. 


and Gator bob is right a lot of us Floridians think we can shoot anyone that is taking/tampering with our stuff, that is false the human body has to be in danger of assault or being assaulted to use force on the criminal. Same thing in your house you can't fire at will at someone walking out with your HDTV because you are not in any danger. Only if the person challenges you can you shoot. Then you have many dates in court!

*They made that law so your life is not in danger during a theft. It doesn't protect your personal property at all. *


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## el9surf

The last 4 post all have different variations and little loopholes. You have to love all the laws and interpretations of them.


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## Brett

I lived in South Florida for 45 years. Boat ramp break-ins happen daily.
I've had my share. I came up with a simple solution.
I bought a nasty old tan 3 speed F150.
A/C worked, rust everywhere,
Looked like a wreck waiting to happen.
Rebuilt the engine, drive train, suspension and brakes.
Had an AM radio with a K-mart FM converter bolted in.
Welded a hitch to the frame, and welded the ball to the hitch.
Never left anything in the cab. Not even in the glove box.
Spare tire and jack were chained and locked in the bed.
No hubcaps, hood was chained shut, lock up underneath hard to reach.
Installed a kill switch under the dash.
Just like an old CJ jeep, never locked the doors.
Vehicle registration was kept in my wallet.
Not only was the latch on the trailer tongue locked,
but a lock and chain went through the frame
and trailer, and both trailer tires were individually
locked and chained. All locks used the same key.
I parked at some of the nastiest ramps in Florida
and the truck and trailer were always there when
I got back. Some times I found the doors ajar,
empty beer cans on the floor that weren't there
when I left, but nothing was stolen. I learned never
to leave anything of value where others can get to it.

Any of you remember Black Point before Dade county built the marina?  

Or the ramp on US1 at Little Blackwater Sound? :-?


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## FSUfisher

> I lived in South Florida for 45 years. Boat ramp break-ins happen daily.
> I've had my share. I came up with a simple solution.
> I bought a nasty old tan 3 speed F150.
> A/C worked, rust everywhere,
> Looked like a wreck waiting to happen.
> Rebuilt the engine, drive train, suspension and brakes.
> Had an AM radio with a K-mart FM converter bolted in.
> Welded a hitch to the frame, and welded the ball to the hitch.
> Never left anything in the cab. Not even in the glove box.
> Spare tire and jack were chained and locked in the bed.
> No hubcaps, hood was chained shut, lock up underneath hard to reach.
> Installed a kill switch under the dash.
> Just like an old CJ jeep, never locked the doors.
> Vehicle registration was kept in my wallet.
> Not only was the latch on the trailer tongue locked,
> but a lock and chain went through the frame
> and trailer, and both trailer tires were individually
> locked and chained. All locks used the same key.
> I parked at some of the nastiest ramps in Florida
> and the truck and trailer were always there when
> I got back. Some times I found the doors ajar,
> empty beer cans on the floor that weren't there
> when I left, but nothing was stolen. I learned never
> to leave anything of value where others can get to it.
> 
> Any of you remember Black Point before Dade county built the marina?
> 
> Or the ramp on US1 at Little Blackwater Sound?  :-?


That's awesome. I think just the old rust bucket deterred a lot of people.


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## Brett

I think that rolling wreck flat out scared people.
When I used it for transportation around town,
for some reason the parking spaces on either
side of the rust bucket always stayed empty.
On the road, people just seemed to leave a little
more following distance. In Miami, that's saying something.
But the 300 cubic inch straight six and the 3 speed
transmission were just about bullet proof.
From Watson Island to Everglades City, the old beast never had any problems.
When I sold it, it was to another boater who wanted it for the same use.


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