Forest Hills Blues

A little vignette from the other side of Western Avenue.

My in-laws came home from vacation to their home in D.C. to discover that someone had bashed in a window, entered their home, and stolen various items. While the Wii we gave them for Christmas last year wasn’t taken, the real blow was that the thieves found the car keys and stole the Honda Accord. However, that was just the start as insult heaped upon injury.

A few weeks later, they received a speeding ticket taken by a camera (no, not Chevy Chase Village). I guess there is no cross-matching between stolen car and speeding ticket databases. When they called the Detective investigating their case, they were told they had to appeal the ticket in order to get it voided. Anyone know how this works in Maryland?

Amazingly, the car was found, trashed but drivable, a few weeks later. The police said they had inspected for evidence but found nothing. Except that my mother-in-law found a receipt paid for by credit card in the car. Oops. She called the police for six straight days before someone returned the call and said that they guessed she could bring it in to the station.

To cap it all off, my father-in-law was stopped the other day for driving a stolen vehicle. I guess he should be grateful it wasn't for unpaid speeding tickets and that they sorted it out before carting him off to jail. More Police Academy than Law & Order.