“My client is in the military and the backpack contained military awards, passport, birth certificate, checkbook, laptop, medical records..everything!”

by Prince Of Petworth August 9, 2016 at 10:45 am 17 Comments

backpack
Photo by PoPville flickr user bajidc

Just leads not lectures, thanks.

“Dear PoPville,

A backpack was stolen from my car in Adams Morgan Monday between 115-2pm. The owner is in the military and the backpack contained military awards, passport, birth certificate, checkbook, laptop, medical records..everything! He is so devastated. This was a black, large North Face backpack stuffed and heavy. We assume someone took the laptop and threw the backpack in a dumpster or bushes. The incident occurred in the 2300 block of Champlain St, NW.

Could residents, dog walkers, runners, etc in Adams Morgan please keep an eye out for a black backpack thrown to the side of the streets?

Please contact me at kkelleydc@yahoo.com if there are any leads.”

bll

wow, I’m really sorry to hear that. might be worth it to check in with some of the restaurants on 18th street and see if anything was put in/near their dumpsters.
Admo_Anon

Second the checking around. Our car was broken into last month on Adams Mill Rd, and we actually found the backpack on the stairs of one of the houses about 6 blocks away, with everything still in there (including alcohol). They likely just are looking for electronics that can be hawked quickly and toss the rest. Good luck!!
Glover Park

Everyone makes mistakes, everyone is careless sometimes. The fact remains that it really sucks for the vet, to say nothing of the letter-writer.
Hill Denizen

I think there needs to be a public education campaign, akin to the metro, hold onto your phone with both hands type deal. People who don’t live in the city or haven’t lived here long, don’t get that you can’t leave a single thing in your car, valuable or not, for any amount of time. It takes something like this to learn that lesson, but there’s always a new crop of new residents and new targets.
- Anonymous
  
  It would be good if the city posted a street sign on the same pole as the No Parking/Street Sweeping hours sign saying bold letter “REMOVE ALL ITEMS FROM CAR. HIGH THEFT AREA.”
  So many people drive into DC from other places that they could use a blatant reminder that they are no longer in Great Falls, Potomac, or Ohio. At this point, the “bag stolen from the car” shtick is a right of passage for any new DC resident who brings a car with them to the city. 99/100 learn their lesson the first time. It’s usually non-residents who don’t realize the high incidence of theft.
  .
  The worst I saw was earlier this year when an out-of-state couple staying at an AirBnB in Adams Morgan were picking up all their strewn luggage and clothing off Calvert Street at 730am on a Sunday morning. Someone smashed the back window of their SUV and went through everything on the sidewalk. I’m sure the couple was hoping to hit the road early and decided to pack their car the night before. This should definitely be a warning that AirBnB hosts provide to their incoming guests. It’s a huge issue in Adams Morgan.
  - Tsar of Truxton
    
    It’s not just a DC thing; it is an anywhere thing. Leaving valuable things in your car is a target no matter where you are. All it takes is the wrong person to walk by. Sure it is more likely to happen in highly trafficked areas like cities, but it can happen anywhere. I think California is the state where it happens most often (Apparently, SF even has a newly formed special task force to deal with it: http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2016/05/20/sf-police-task-force-targets-car-break-ins/). A friend of mine has his car broken into at some hotel in Fresno when he was moving across the country (his car was filled to the gills with his stuff).
K

It looks like a few of the commenters here need to read the link. And also remember that rubbing salt in the wound helps no one.
- Prince Of Petworth
  
  I’ve deleted so many lectures that I just give up. To those who are well intentioned thank you. To the others…
  - FridayGirl
    
    Agreed. Would it be possible to close the comments on the posts like these in the future to avoid the headache? Or does that defeat the purpose?
    - Prince Of Petworth
      
      Yeah sometimes people leave tips in the comments.
      - textdoc
        
        But this post also provides a contact e-mail. Maybe in future posts, close the comments and encourage people with tips/leads to contact the OP directly?
- Anons
  
  Agree, ++++ to helpful suggestions and support
  And fie on the unhelpful lectures and “someone should have been more responsible”
annonny

This sucks. Perhaps you can put up posters in the neighborhood, too? Good luck.
TJ

Is there a backpack theft contest of some sort going on? Every one of these posts lists an ever increasing amount of difficult to replace important stuff left unattended in a car in the middle of the city.

I hope this person finds their stuff. Best is if someone notices it and gets in touch. I just two weeks ago returned a backpack and wallet I found in my garbage can in the alley. Also left in a car…
BitterElitist

I can guarantee, they didn’t throw anything in that backpack out. If this is a legal client, I recommend assisting him with locking up his identity (Experian) and aqcuiring new identification. That’s a frightening amount of information. His efforts are best spend stemming the tide of identify theft. He won’t see any of this – including the backpack – again.

If you have more clients that need to bring you this level of information so you can do your job; this example needs to be part of your initial intake meeting. DC is DC.

Best of luck to him in sorting this out.
- HaileUnlikely
  
  I’d recommend the same regardless of what sort of client it was (legal, real estate, social work, graphic design, doesn’t matter)
DupontDC

Can’t hurt to try looking in that clothing drop off box that’s near Marie Reed/Jack Rose. Thief could have dropped it in there after going through contents. I see people dropping stuff in there all the time.

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