Monday, February 9, 2009

They’ll Never Find Me Here!

I like to pride myself as being a law abiding person. I don't steal things from stores. I don't buy, sell or use drugs. I follow the rules of the road while I'm driving. All this means that I don't often have to think about what I would do if I was on the run from the police.

There are plenty of shows on television that have to deal with this, so I guess I could just watch more of them if I wanted to learn some of the finer points of evasion. The only problem I see with these shows is that they hinge on having or acquiring items that are just not available to most people. The super-duper-high-intensity-thermal injected laser for cutting through the wall of the prison. Or the satellite uplink gizmo that allows you to tap into the surveillance cameras so you can run a loop of video and pass by unseen. I'd like to think I am capable of figuring out how to do things that are new to me, but these items are probably beyond my meagre skills. And really—who has the time?

Maybe simple is the best way to go. You often hear about criminals sending themselves out of the prison in the laundry. A few months ago there was the guy who actually mailed himself out in a parcel (he worked in the mail room). But even those avenues require access to special areas of the facility. Recently a young offender in Michigan escaped from the holding cell where he was being held after an appearance before a judge. He managed to find a car in the parking lot that was unlocked and hid in the trunk. He might even have gotten away if an eagle eyed guard had not seen a piece of paper on the ground beside the car and decided to investigate. He then found the kid in the trunk.

Why is this case an example of good escape technique? Well the kid thought outside the box (literally, considering he was headed to jail!). He did the unexpected and almost got away. His only mistake, aside from the ones he obviously made to get into court in the first place, was not making sure he did not leave behind a trail for the authorities to follow.

Oh, and the car he was in—it belonged to the judge! Who would have thought to look inside the vehicle, of the guy who puts the criminals away, for an escaped criminal? I wonder if no one had found the kid in the trunk and the judge got home with him there, if the judge could have been charged with kidnapping? Probably not. Maybe just taking his work home with him!

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