Is there a Lawyer in the House? (or a good law geek?)

[nogravebutthesea]

Hey folks,

So ok,

I am at a club with a girl.
Im wearing Jogging pants with no pockets so I give her my Keys She attaches them to her big ass key ring.
We get very drunk and I end up in a fight. Cops Happen.
In the process of being booked I am clear to all cops that she has my keys hooked onto her keys.
She gets bailed out before me and convinces the clerk cop to give her the key ring with my keys on it.
My house geets robbed 2 days later (yes i locked my doors and windows and no one else has a key and no forceable entry).....

Are the police at all legally liable?
If so or why?
If not why? and should they be?

Thanks for your help......
Will C:freedom

[patio11]

I'm not a lawyer, this is not specific legal advice, you should not rely on it in the least, insert other disclaimers here...

The police are not legally liable. You assumed all risk by voluntarily giving the girl your keys. Any claim you could make would have to hinge on the cops negligently allowing the girl to make off with your property. If they don't have statutory immunity in your state to civil torts for actions in the line of duty, then the obvious response for them is "We were not in a situation to verify whether they were, in fact, his keys. He was a little drunk at the time and we had just arrested him. Perps say the darndest things, you know?" Many judges would fine this line of argument sufficiently compelling to dismiss the case.

You should, however, file a police report, give them the facts, and they will most likely question and/or arrest the girl (they should still have her information on file from when they processed her).

Patrick McKenzie

[Liz]

Will, honey, your mom called, and she said to stop getting in fights. And maybe you drink a little too much, but that she should say something, no...

Patrick is right-the police aren't liable, but filing a report with the police now will help establish the extent of your own drunk, sorry liability. So that later, when she's pulled over for speeding through West Ranier in a Camaro with a broken headlight, there will be a little flag on her record for the cop to notice....and I think we all know the way it goes from there (cue dueling banjos).

good luck.

Liz

[nogravebutthesea]

your not far off Liz.....

She drives a camaro and its the brake light thats out....

[shea_d]

Another point to consider is the cops probably didn't know that your keys were on her key ring. They can't be held liable for the damage to your home because they didn't know they were giving her the keys to your home. In their mind, there was nothing wrong with giving this person her own property back. Sorry buddy.