Squirrel's Flag Theft Caught on Camera by Toledo Police
A flag-stealing squirrel is to blame for the recent disappearances of small flags at the Toledo Police Memorial Garden in Ohio.
Officers had been noticing that flags were disappearing from the memorial for days, reports the Toledo Blade.
No suspects were spotted, and no clues were found. Until now.
The furry and elusive flag-stealing squirrel was spotted by police officers James Brown and Mark King Wednesday morning, the Toledo Blade reports.
Officers even caught the squirrel red-pawed:
Photo Credit: Toledo Police/Lieutenant James Brown
Apparently, the squirrel was quite adept at taking the miniature flags off the wooden dowel. Officers said it took the furry little critter about 30 seconds to remove the flag.
Clearly, this squirrel had practice. It already had a few flags neatly woven into its nest, located in a nearby tree, according to the Toledo Blade. At least he should get some brownie points for being patriotic.
Is the squirrel going to get a judicial smack-down for his flag-stealing ways? Probably not.
After all, the squirrel is a squirrel.
And, animals aren't usually subject to criminal laws like "stealing," even if their flagrantly illegal actions are caught on film.
Most criminal statutes are written with, well, humans in mind. Though, sometimes pet owners can be criminally or civilly liable if their pets do something against the law. For example, dog owners can be liable for their dog's biting if the dog has a history of aggression.
But, it seems like nobody "owns" this flag-stealing squirrel. So, is anybody really to blame for his pilfering antics? The Toledo Police Memorial Garden has, however, lost about three miniature flags in the past few days, according to the AP.
Related Resources:
- Squirrel blamed for flag thefts from Ohio memorial (AP)
- Animal Bites: Who Pays Damages? (FindLaw)
- Vicious Squirrel Attacking Vermont Residents, Could Go 'Ballistic' (FindLaw's Legally Weird)