Car Theft Victim
New Member
- Jurisdiction
- California
My car was stolen and I reported the theft to the police. About a week after the theft the car was involved in a police chase. The police told me nothing about this. I learned about it from a friend who told me information about my car was posted to a facebook group that monitors the local police radio frequencies.
The police had to give up the chase because the thief was running red lights. One of the thieves jumped out of the car and they captured him but let him go. He gave up the name of the thief driving the car who has a history with the local police.
Regarding the chase, an incident report is on file. I spoke with a police officer before requesting the report. He said they know who the thief is but wouldn't tell me. He also said I could get the report but it might be redacted.
The next day I went to the police station to get the report but the clerk there told me it would be mostly worthless as they would redact nearly everything, including the names of the thieves. The clerk told me if I wanted the report unredacted I would have to sue the police.
Can that be correct? It's my car. Don't I have the right to know who is riding in it and who is driving it? I can't believe I would have to spend thousands of dollars on a lawsuit to find out something I should have every right to know.
I don't know what to do next and would greatly appreciate any information on how I should go about trying to get the report. This occurred in California. Thank you
The police had to give up the chase because the thief was running red lights. One of the thieves jumped out of the car and they captured him but let him go. He gave up the name of the thief driving the car who has a history with the local police.
Regarding the chase, an incident report is on file. I spoke with a police officer before requesting the report. He said they know who the thief is but wouldn't tell me. He also said I could get the report but it might be redacted.
The next day I went to the police station to get the report but the clerk there told me it would be mostly worthless as they would redact nearly everything, including the names of the thieves. The clerk told me if I wanted the report unredacted I would have to sue the police.
Can that be correct? It's my car. Don't I have the right to know who is riding in it and who is driving it? I can't believe I would have to spend thousands of dollars on a lawsuit to find out something I should have every right to know.
I don't know what to do next and would greatly appreciate any information on how I should go about trying to get the report. This occurred in California. Thank you
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