First, to Loren, my condolences. That's a shame.

I remove mine and bring it in with me here at work, but usually leave it in the car if I am just running around town. I may start rethinking that..

Depending on where you live/drive, this just seems like a gamble where it is impossible to know the odds with any precision. So, I don't leave the Empeg in the car unless I have direct line-of-sight to the car, and, sadly, I don't take the Empeg in my car as often as I would if crime/theft wasn't a risk.

As for the similar plates.. there could be more going on here than meets the eye. How do we know that the eye witness did not get the correct plate number? The thief may have stolen those as well, put them on his car for just such an emergency, and put his originals back on when he was safe. Just an outside possibility, and I hope a wrong one. Similar numbers provide a better chance of finding the thief.

Yes, I'd think they should be looking for a Honda with that plate. I mean, *I* never do crimes without some fresh stolen plates.

But I do know that I would not leave my car double parked while performing a crime, that kind of stands out.. dont you think? Maybe this guy is not so bright afterall.

Criminals span the brightness spectrum. This double-parking was probably not stupid from their standpoint as it got the job done. A brazen, nonchalant attitude helps, too. First, honest, innocent citizens can form the impression that "everything must be OK. That guy is just standing there..." ; more jaded citizens can go "no way am I going to ask that guy what he's doing. I could get shot for my trouble." The people who did this probably have experience with the criminal justice system. They know they're taking a chance with some jail time, but they probably don't care very much. Especially if they're juveniles, they know that the risk of prolonged incarceration is small.

These guys don't think like us.