This is absolutely horrible…
We’ve heard the argument many times that car theft is really a victimless crime as long as vehicles are insured. However, we know that’s absolutely ridiculous for a number of reasons. A great example comes via an awful incident involving a stolen Dodge Challenger Hellcat in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania which went down way back on September 10. The end result was two people lost their lives.
Learn about the Canadian car thieves and home invaders recently arrested here.
According to a local report, police spotted the Hellcat speeding down Route22/Allentown Boulevard. The report doesn’t say officers chased the Mopar muscle car, only that it lost control and veered off the road.
In the crash, two people were ejected from the Dodge and they died from their injuries. One was 25, the other 24. A third person, who’s 28, survived the crash and was taken to the hospital. Police say they found drugs and drug paraphernalia while conducting their investigation. It was also discovered the same muscle car ran from Delaware State Troopers after it was stolen the previous night.
Some would say the only victims in this incident got what they deserved. Since we don’t have all the facts, we’re not going with that. Just because someone is riding in a stolen car doesn’t mean they stole it or that they know it was stolen. Yes, the driver was speeding and ran from police, so that doesn’t look good, but we don’t think anyone deserves to die just for that. Instead, two people were victims of the driver’s poor choices.
But that’s not where the victimization stops. The owner of the Hellcat was also victimized, even if the insurance covered the full replacement cost of the car. If you’ve ever had a vehicle stolen, you know the kind of stress it causes and the additional expenses insurance just doesn’t cover. Plus, as insurance companies have to pay out on more stolen cars, the rates in different areas increase, so we all end up being victimized financially.
Stealing vehicles isn’t a victimless crime.
Source: WGAL
Image via Stellantis
