Most people spend their summers swimming, going to concerts, etc. Not me. I’ve been in bed for 25 days because I broke my leg on a stolen trike. I know it sounds crazy, but it’s true. … It’s also not that simple.
I’ve been wanting to make some kind of statement, and I’m happy the Flyer gave me the opportunity to formally let everyone know what happened. I’ve been hearing rumors, and that makes me nervous so I want to address them.
Here goes.
I thought I was rescuing the tricycle. I know, I’m a weird guy. I’m someone who keeps a look out for discarded items that may still be of use, like lumber poking out of a demolition dumpster or clothes thrown away by departing students each year.
You can imagine how exciting it was for someone like me, a huge nerd for sustainability and reuse, to discover an abandoned cargo tricycle – what a find! Sure, I knew it would take a couple of hours to get it working again, but I didn’t mind putting the time in. I considered it community service, and I thought I was going the extra mile to keep our community looking good.
I was even proud of myself when I cut the chain and walked it home. After I got it fixed up, I did like most men do when they get new toys: I couldn’t stop showing it off. I rode it to City Hall, to the Farmers’ Market, and around campus. I showed it to everyone who came over. The tricycle was unique, and I liked the conversations it generated with people. I liked it enough that I made plans to replace some of the parts, clean the rust off, and give it a new coat of paint. I even took it to the shop to have it looked at.
Unfortunately, it turned out that the tricycle wasn’t abandoned, it just seemed that way. Here’s what happened… When I first saw the tricycle on campus, I was interested in how it was put together, so I took a look at it to see if I might be able to build one. Over a semester and a half, every time I visited campus, I noticed it hadn’t moved, and I watched the tricycle deteriorate to the point it became unsafe to ride and finally completely broken down. There was no doubt in my mind it had been abandoned.
I didn’t find out it was stolen until after I got home from the first hospital visit and went back to unchain it from the scene of the injury. A police officer met my fiance there and came to my home to explain it had been reported stolen. I was surprised to say the least, and I asked the officer to give my contact information to the owner so I could explain my misunderstanding and that I was glad to give it back. I also wanted to make sure the owner knew the dangers of the tricycle, since I had just broken my leg with it.
I knew I messed up. I knew immediately that I should have reported it lost+found to UA Transit or UAPD, but instead I became a recycling vigilante and just went to work salvaging a tricycle without speaking to anyone.
It was my mistake, and realizing that served as an important lesson: check your facts before you act, because what is a rescue to one person might be theft to another.
Fortunately, this has all been for the best, and there are at least two more lessons I learned. You see, I broke my leg when the tricycle malfunctioned, and even though I’m facing five-digit medical bills and I haven’t been able to fix my own meals until a few days ago, it may be one of the best things that has happened to me. When I first found out the tricycle was stolen, I thought it was poetic justice that I broke my leg, but it turned out to be some kind of karmic opportunity.
Most people who know me know how busy I am with various projects. I’m way into green energy and the Internet and I’m on the City Council and blah blah blah…
But people who are very close to me know the truth: that I’ve been bordering on burnout for a long time. Breaking my leg has given me time to reflect on my life and my goals, and now I feel a certain alignment with my priorities and personal energy. In the past few days that I’ve felt well enough to work (having just undergone surgery), I’ve felt more productive than ever. I’m finally clear-headed again, and I’m able to focus on what’s important to me.
Lesson two: it’s vital to take time to reflect and get your life in order, otherwise stress will keep you from your dreams and goals.
And regarding the tricycle being stolen, that’s worked out fine, too. The owner and I are on great terms, having spoken several times. She even invited me and my fiancé to attend her roller derby battle this weekend. I could almost – but not quite – describe the return of the tricycle as “kumbayah.”
Lesson three: Fayetteville has some great people who are understanding, and I’m fortunate to live in this great community.
Still, everyone being understanding is no excuse, and I know I made a mistake when I decided to take the tricycle home for repair. It’s obvious that I should have pursued things through official channels, and it sucks, and I feel bad about it.
Now, I’m just trying to lay everything out on the table so you can decide for yourselves whether or not you even care.
So there it is. There’s the story. I hope you understand, and thanks for listening.
Matthew Petty
Fayetteville
Fayetteville Speaks is your chance to express opinions and ideas for possible publication here on the Fayetteville Flyer. The opinions expressed here are not those of the Fayetteville Flyer. See our submissions page for full guidelines.
I have to say I voted for you and I see eye to eye with you on the vast majority of your environmental views – even some of the more controversial ones – but I’m having a really hard time understanding how this could be ok. I’m glad you see that what you did is wrong, but the fact that you felt entitled to cut a chain (because that’s the part makes it hard to grasp for me) and take something that wasn’t yours in the first place is a huge issue, especially since you apparently know you should have taken other avenues before stealing the bike. I rescued a bike once – from a trash pile in front of a house. I knocked on the door and double checked that it didn’t belong to a kid who had tossed it there. They were happy to pass it along and I was confident that no one would be bummed that their bike went missing. I guess I would never ever ever think it was ok – under any circumstances – to cut a chain and steal a bike.
I’m glad you see that what you did is wrong. It concerns me that you did it anyway.
Thank god someone did something to clean up the trashed bikes on campus. The racks in front of the union have quite a few that have been there since last year, and some of them are really falling apart.
They make our campus fugly and keep me from parking my own bike. One of them was even chained sideways to a rack until a few months ago.
For what it’s worth, the owner and I chatted again last for about an hour. She told me that her and her boyfriend knew the bike was falling apart and they thought someone might see it as abandoned and take it.
She told me she was too mad at first to admit it, but that she probably would have done the same thing.
Not that that makes it any better…
I’m not sure what the laws on campus are, but you’re lucky you didn’t get charged with grand larceny (felony theft) since you cut the chain. In some places, isn’t it a felony to steal bicycles? I guess the low value of the thing would have probably just left you with a misdemeanor. Good thing you got everything cleared up. What a mess. Good luck with that leg.
Oh Matt, I care. Now, would you admit you stole my widescreen TV and return it… Oh, and please do something with that vertical hold problem. Get well soon, all this introspection is killing us.
Did you get a ticket for stealing someone property ?
Why did the officer not arrest a thief of someones property?
Since you are a city council member is that why you got away with a crime?
How can we trust someone who would cut the chain off a bike
he wanted and take it?
I thought this man was green but now I know he is shady .
Aunt Bee call the man.
In the eyes of the law, it’s up to the victim whether or not it’s a crime. If the victim chooses to press charges, then the law decides whether it’s a misdemeanor or a felony.
In other words, I didn’t get arrested because the tricycle owner didn’t want me to be arrested.
@Brent – I don’t even own a TV. And what’s the vertical hold problem?
Matthew Petty, Matt is a guest contributor for the Fayetteville Flyer. He’s an entrepreneur and City Council member in Fayetteville. And a Admitted thief of personal property dont leave anything laying around he might steal and recycle your property I guess recyling stolen property is not a crime
If he was a Razorback football player he would of been hauled to Jail and
kicked around by all.
Aunt Bee call the man
@Barney – You’re certainly entitled to your opinion, but this case wasn’t handled any differently than other cases.
Now just wait a here so someone reports a crime,Police-man finds the criminal.
Victim finds out who the criminal is, they have the choice of how the criminal is treated. I dont think so.B-S
Aunt Bee call the man
We will See wont we
Aunt Bee call the man
Was it a blue tricycle by the union? That thing had been there for over a year! There is no way that you stole that thing.
Matt rub a little more B.S. on your wound
Aunt Bee call the man
Fayetteville Flyer just jumped the shark.
@Jane – That’s the one.
@Barney – Hahaha.. I’m sorry, but if you think I have that kind of power, that’s funny.
Call Aunt Bee.. hell, why don’t you call up UAPD with an FOIA request and ask them for a statement about whether or not they handled this case any differently. You can receive all of the reports, including any communication officers had with the trike owner. When you’re done, report back here and be sure to give all the juicy details of how I manipulated one of our local police forces for my own political advantage.
I’ve never been part of a conspiracy theory before, so this should be fun.
Just dont steal Opie’s or Gomer’s.. Was the Fayetteville Police called? you stole it at the UofA but crashed it in Fayetteville.I dont think a thief has a political advantage ask Mr.Clark
Aunt Bee Call UAPD and get the facts.And see why FPD wasn’t called
@Barney – FPD wasn’t involved because campus isn’t their jurisdiction. It’s no crime to break your leg, even if I wasn’t on campus when that happened.
If you don’t believe me (again), when you’re doing your research on the conspiracy you can ask FPD to verify.
Mr. Petty–
You are engaged in a dialogue with a troll. Barney has no interest but causing trouble. I’m sure he types his posts with one hand because he’s thrilled that you respond to him.
@Barney- Get over it. You have beaten this issue to death without even getting your facts straight. If the victin decides not to press criminal charges it is not a crime, end of story. Quit bullying the crippled kid.
@Matt- Nice job so far Matt, we need more people like you involved in local politics.
SO chief Lyle how many times are our police force called out for a domestic crime and the battered party does not want to press charges sfter the police get there. Do you think the policeman drive off and say no harm no foul.
Im not bullying a crippled kid he repesents our city and goverment and all it has.What was he thinking when carried bolt cutters and cut the chain and crawled away with someones property,he makes future decisiosn that the city will have to live with for a long time sure Matts a young brash local politican
but now he is not credible and Im sorry to say he fooled ole Barny I voted for him
Aunt Bee tell Barny to leave this crippled kid alone
You’re comparing this to domestic battery? Wow, you are dumb.
Did you even read what he wrote? I don’t think he’s trying to fool anyone. He’s being nothing but honest, and you’re freaked out about something that has nothing to do with politics. I mean, this was a private matter and the owner doesn’t even seem to care, and it seems like our Alderman has been more than generous in explaining everything.
If you want to pick on Alderman Petty for something, pick on him for supporting Terry Hoskins’ highway reroute right after he got elected. That’s been his only bonehead move so far, and it was a big one.
I studied both Terry Hoskins’ Park West proposal and the project that will be built. The rerouting was a good idea, and Fayetteville would have done well to agree to it, even in the current economic climate. As currently proposed, the reconfiguration of Highway 112 will be more disruptive, more expensive, more drawn out, and less safe than it could have been.
Mr. Petty is no more or less boneheaded than anybody else on the Council– except for the lapse of responding to a forum troll.
Wow ! I really can’t believe you felt it was appropriate to cut a chain on a bike. If someone would have done that to your bike, you would be up in arms. You would have a facebook page dedicated to the cause and wanting people to rally around you. You should be ashamed of yourself.
You are a thief who got caught. You need to resign your position on the city council immediately. I am ashamed that I actually voted for you.
Clean energy, green jobs, sticky fingers !
You bastard.
Now get us a roundabout w/ statue in midtown as penance.
matt – I’m glad that you are on the mend. As for the folks who feel you are some sort of petty thief (no pun intended) – you aren’t going to be able to make everyone understand why you did what you did. I’d be happy that the original owner of the trike understands and didn’t choose to press charges.
Stay honest and keep up the good work.
bike theft is the least of society’s problems.
and as for Matt being on the city council and making the judgment he made, whats the difference between that and UAPD’s Razorbike proposal to take abandoned bikes after the school year ends to paint them and provide them to students?… not a damn difference.
I dropped the ball on decorating the bike to make it more of a bike/billboard for KXUA and then i never got around to taking it home after last year’s Razorbash because it would have been a big chore for where i lived at the time.
Also, before the trike even disappeared i realized that i cleaned out my backpack and thrown away the lock package with the combo printed inside.. so either way someone would have had to cut the chain.
Matt and I had the same thoughts going through our heads about the trike, Matt-”hmm this trike is getting progressively crappier and shouldn’t go to waste” Me-”man, the trike is looking junky and abandoned, i hope someone does not take it”
the fact that it disappeared was not a huge shock, but thankfully this is fayetteville and has good people–it would never work out that way in my TX home town.
Christay – Did you report the bike stolen ? If so, why did you do that ? If not, how did anyone realize the bike was yours ?
If you did report it as stolen, then what changed your mind on not to prosecute ? Because it was Petty ?
* not an a-hole
** crapping on me
Matt, forget it. You’re not the mayor, a governor, senator or someone’s priest. You sincerely apologized to the trike owner and he/she accepted. That’s that. I wouldn’t explain another thing to anyone. Trike’s are for old ladies in garden hats or eccentics wearing seersucker suits & bowties. Now you know.
yrfuneralmytrial–
Do you have something against seersucker suits and bow ties? I protest! Have at you!
I stole rocks from a local creek in town to use in my landscaping.
I also stole mulch from a pile in a parking lot (where it had been sitting for weeks unused. the remainder sat for another three months before it was removed).
I stole gravel from the trail right of way to fill a hole in my driveway.
I stole a brick from a construction/demolition site.
I think thats about it.
If I broke my foot riding a stolen trike, I wouldn’t Twitter, blog, or publish it, anywhere. This isn’t even Mayberry-grade drama. Barney Fife would roll his eyes.
Glad you’re on the road to recovery, but your attention-grabbing is at 11. We need you at a three.
Agree with the shark-jumping comment. Flyer, the next trike story had better be about someone in Fonzie leathers jumping one over a real shark tank. Less talk, more rock.
Can someone post a link to Perry’s original blog, facebook or flyer posting about his contribution to the city/campus by stealing (sorry, broken down or not, bolt cutters equal pre-med theft) someone’s piece-of-crap trike (who rides a trike and thinks it’s cool btw…). What? There is no such story or post? No rant from his eco/green soapbox?
Just so I understand, you only posted your tediously long “yeah but…” justification of the theft AFTER you got caught. Confirm/deny.
Nice work. I’m trying to imagine Lioneld posting a story on facebook about how he stole a wheelbarrow from a delapitated house: “Sure it was in the garage but the window was broken so I just shimmied my way in…”.
Yeah, I can’t see that happening either.
Way to go COUNCILBOY.
Christay- Way to be, that’s a seriously great attitude about it.
Matt- Excellent job of stepping up and admitting fault. F the haters. <3
I’m trying to figure out if the comments on here are really meant to take the piss, or if you are really castigating some guy for stealing a dilapidated tricycle. You’d think he was embezzling city monies. It’s not even that interesting of a drama. I stole a sugar packet from Taco Bell. Time for a scene out of The Crucible! Thief! Thief!
Sounds more like you’re sorry you got caught, not that you did something wrong. You’ll do just fine in politics with that mentality.
When Petty apologizes and tells the whole story (and the trike owner absolves him of wrongdoing), it’s attention whoring… Maybe so, but I bet the same people criticizing his mea culpa would be laying into him 10 fold if he had remained silent.
Councilman, the state can still prosecute you for theft. You have committed a crime against society. Theft of Property, A.C.A. 5-36-103(a). The “victim,” in this situation, happens to be a participant in the ordeal, but the state happens to control the criminal proceedings. If subpoenaed, the victim (Christay) would be required to appear in court, tell the truth, and the judge or jury would decide your fate. (quote from Christay on this blog: “i reported it stolen because it went missing, and it is mine.” Doesn’t sound like your bike/trike to me, councilman.
This sort of thing happens all the time with other crimes, ex. domestic battery, i.e. husband beats wife, wife and husband reconcile, state continues to pursue charges because it is against the law to beat your wife (domestic battery 3rd degree). If you don’t like that example, consider a witness who sees a murder/aggravated robbery/theft, but is afraid to testify…if subpoenaed, he/she is still required to appear in court…and tell the truth. To me, from Christay’s comments, this was not lost or mislaid property – you took it after a long period of watching it unattended. That doesn’t make it right. Sounds like a crime to me.
Regardless, it doesn’t sound very valuable, so I bet you’re still at a misdemeanor level. Good job, thief – best case scenario. Doesn’t matter if it’s UAPD, FayPD…don’t take things that aren’t yours…even if it is an awesome trike-bike.
The old adage “It’s better to ask forgiveness than permission” is not an excuse. As an elected official, you should take every precaution to avoid the appearance of impropriety. You’re lucky you have a reasonable “victim.” Use your head, thief. Hopefully, your constituents will be as forgiving.
Mr. Petty, you’re a liar and a thief. You took something that didn’t belong to you – plain and simple. You can rationalize all you want, but the facts are what they are. If you’re having trouble distinguishing between right and wrong, then you should consider seeking professional help.
What you got here is a failure to communicate.
Avoid hiding behind detail to justify your actions.
Aunt Bee the thief has been called out
Matt deserves a night in the box.
I think it’s commendable that you wanted to put the bike to good use and that you saw something that needed rescuing and refitting and could be saved from an imminent trash pile. I would be more inclined to cheer you on if a) you had gone through proper channels (which you say you realize you should have, so that’s great) and b) you hadn’t kept it for yourself. As it stands – sorry, you seem like a nifty guy, but it looks like you stole a bike so you could have it. I think it’s flippant to say “you can decide for yourselves whether or not you even care.” I do care when people feel like it’s ok to take something without asking, whether they’re in public office or not. I think it smacks of a sense of entitlement that I find disappointing.
I’m not going to call you names or call for your resignation. I think you’re doing good work. But I’m going to let you know (again!) – politely – that I’m disappointed and that yes, I do care and it does bother me and there are probably others out there who voted for you that feel the same way but aren’t inclined to comment on the Flyer.
It seems like you want to turn this into something good, though. How about going through legal channels to get those bikes to people who could use them? Maybe a city loaner bike program? If there’s an abandoned bike problem on campus, we should leverage it into something positive for everyone. I’ll volunteer to help.
Courtney – Thanks for keeping it civil.
I agree with you except for b). Aside from the circumstances resulting from a), what’s wrong with keeping it for myself? I was putting it to use constantly. It was my grocery store bike.
This is rich. So you may or may not have seen Greg Harton’s editorial on this incident that appeared in today’s NWA Times.
It’s a fair editorial, and I made a comment using their new system to say as much. Then it was deleted. Then I went to check the commenting terms of use to see why it was deleted, and I get a page not found error.
Hey NWA Times – Why don’t you just turn the commenting system off and stop pretending like you care if your readers want to share something with you?
Matt – I’ve rescued stuff from trash piles and kept it for myself, so you’re correct in pointing out that in a recycling/rescue situation, there’s really nothing wrong with keeping it for yourself. But it looks like you wanted a bike and you cut the chain on this one and took it. It seems to me that if your concern was with all those bikes on campus just sitting there deteriorating that you would have started an effort to take care of that rather than stealing this one bike. I don’t think it makes what you did any more or less wrong. I think it speaks to your reason for doing it.
Fair enough. I admit I was only interested in cleaning up the bike that would be most useful to me.
Matt Petty
You were shady before the election. You speak of supporting green jobs while you don’t even have one, whose going to pay your medical bills ??? It is very interesting that you never did post about the “taking of the bike”. It is clearly a theft and you got off lucky. Randy Zurcher would be proud of you. Greg Harton wrote a very good article on you. Could you please tell us what else you have taken so when it comes out we are aware that you were trying to rescue it. Too bad the owner of the bike rescued you, I wonder if it had been a black athlete, if the result would have been the same. You probably begged the owner of the bike to not prosecute. You are still shady.
“Fair enough. I admit I was only interested in cleaning up the bike that would be most useful to me.”
IT WAS NOT YOUR BIKE, ITS NOT ALL ABOUT YOU. FOR GD SAKE, APOLOGIZE AND GO FIND SOME WORK AND TAKE SOME RESPONSIBILITY.
Matt – I see your comment on the NWATimes site.
People who think I haven’t admitted wrongdoing need to reread what I wrote.
@Courtney – I guess my complaining got to them. They still deleted my comment on the Habitotes article and it’s not been added back.
So when you went to go cut the chain- did you sneak around in the dark? Or did you go in broad day light. You stole a trike???? You are simply a Petty Thief. Please do us all a favor and resign.
Broad daylight. I didn’t try to hide anything, and I’ve never stolen anything before.
And I’m not going to resign.
I threw up a poll at Ozarks Unbound – on the right side, near the bottom. I’ll be interested to see if folks would term it “theft” or “liberation.”
We shall see. I’ll report back the results in a week.
Jesus, who cares? Are people really that interested? Matt, your 4th lesson should be “apologize and never talk of it again”. You’re kind of fanning the flames now. Feel the hole getting deeper? You’re square with the owner, the cops and skydaddy right? Then tell everyone to eat it. Hell, if it makes you feel better, I’ll steal a bike AND have sex with it. Rough sex.
Looks like time for a recall election.
Petty thief could make it easier by resigning.
This kind of opportunist would take a kickback to get something passed.
Ward 2, What were you thinking?
Why would the editor of a prominent paper take MP to task over a worthless bike? Is there genuine concern MP is a dysfunctional leader who may soon be out of control or is there another agenda at work?
I no longer live in NWA so I missed the editorial (I don’t subscribe). I need you to explain to me what’s behind this “exposure”.
Ask yourself a question and give it honest consideration…do you think MP will EVER again take something that doesn’t belong to him? Do you really want to condemn this young man for such an innocent act. Do you really want to do that? If you do, what does that say about you?
We need more honest people in city government who are willing to step up and admit mistakes they’ve made, even the silly mistakes.
Hey, at least he didn’t lie about WMD’s or lie about getting a bj from a staffer.
You have, how you say, muchas cojones, Mr. Petty.
Everyone makes mistakes! Why crucify MP for a stupid mistake that didn’t hurt anyone but himself? In my opinion, the only person he really needs to talk to about the taking the trike is the owner….. he’s has done that! Give it a rest people….let him mend in Peace! Matt, you are an amazing young man …. I support you 100%!
@ARKinOK Theft is an innocent act? Since when? Regardless of the authenticity of his apology and the acceptance of it by the owner of the stolen property; the fact of the matter is Mr. Petty stole the property of another. Being sorry about getting caught doesn’t make everything ok.
@ Michael…Have you ever taken anything that wasn’t yours?
Physical property nope, I have downloaded MP3s w/o paying for them and you won’t find me arguing that doing so is not theft.
My god, 64 comments over an alderman’s stealing of a tricycle and 2 comments (one of which doesn’t show up) about the upcomming property tax vote. This is a gerat example of the problem with politics these days. Please voice your opinion on things that really matter and might actually have an effect on us instead of fighting back and forth about this piddly crap!
@Michael, do you consider yourself a thief?
What consequence should MP suffer for his theft?
Nobody wants to comment on yesterday’s editorial?
Why was it there?
Seems if it’s such “piddly crap” it wouldn’t make the editors comment in “the paper”.
@ARKinOK, currently no, at the time though I wouldn’t have argued that label.
One could say he’s suffered his punishment already with the broken leg. With the minimal value of the trike and taking into consideration both that it was a premeditated theft and he did return the property, I’d say some community service would be appropriate.
I’ve not read the editorial about it, didn’t even know one existed till today.
Why does this story, which was first uploaded three days ago, get “buried” on the FF website leaving us to still worry about the “Darker Side of Dickson” on the FF homepage? I’m sure there is a reasonable explanation, and I am in no way blaming anyone for this. I have noticed that there are other more recent articles clearly linked on the homepage, but this is not one of them. With the numerous comments posted, it seems that it would at least have a link on the first page.
Please ignore the last comment. It has now returned to the homepage.
This story is probably old news now, but Christay put up a response and an actual picture of the trike on the KXUA blog today
http://kxua883.blogspot.com/2009/08/my-trike-is-in-news.html
With 50 people voting, here were the results of the poll over at Ozarks Unbound.
Wow– 34 voted theft; 16 voted liberation. I don’t know who is more indicted– Mr. Petty, or your readers.
Matt, I had to skip through the bizarre comments to ask you a question. First, thanks for owning up to the mistakes. When I read the newspaper articles about this I though “you’re kidding, who does this guy think he is.” Now after reading your article I understand you and I’m glad you won’t do it again.
But I have a more important question: How did you break your leg riding a trike? Isn’t the point of a trike that three wheels keep you from falling? I haven’t riden a trike since I was pretty little – are adult trikes more difficult to ride? I don’t say this to make fun I really want to know the story.
Thanks again for explaining.
Kevin
I voted for you. I would again. I own a trike in disrepair. You can steal it for a bit if you want to fix it up. And in your defense there are tons of abandoned bikes screaming for liberation here on campus.
and @Barney, you sir are a self righteous goon and irritating tah boot. Go back to Mayberry or where ever it is. Most of America was stolen from somebody. Granted I don’t want my bike stolen but if I leave it outside for months it is slowly being stolen by the earth anyways. And if the owner doesn’t want to press charges why waste time and taxpayer money on charging people who aren’t real problems.
If you’ve got to cut a chain or break a lock to get at a bit of “abandoned property,” — it isn’t abandoned.It is secured. Busting the lock on a vacant house does not make it “your house.”
Seems simple enough to me.
I just want to say that Matt Petty is an excellent and progressive councilman.
Keep up the good work!
Wait until your streets are full of rotting, dilapidated bikes; then you’ll be absolutely begging your councilmen to clean up your beautiful streets.
wow what uproar over nothing. It wasnt like he stole someones new bike that was being used. the thing had been there for years and was rusting out, even the owner couldnt unlock it! It clearly wasnt a piece of property that was being used or cared for and honestly she didnt even care about it until it was gone!
I’m more concerned about his contribution to the council not if he moonlights as a bike repairer and recycler (whats next, will we press charges because he doesnt only buy new things?) what is he not stimulating the economy because he helps to reuse the waste we chuck aside (or in this case lock up the in same place for years at a time with no use..)
I’d say, she got her bike back, and it was REPAIRED, so all in all, she wins on the situation, she can now use it, and its free from the chain she couldnt use anyway. It seems that another important fact is being thrown out, he didnt steal it from someones yard or driveway, it was on campus, for more than a year, without use, that ALONE is enough to suggest that its abandoned.
agreed he didnt take the proper channels, but hell, who does? I know I know, lets put him through the ringer because hes a councilman, but thats all this is. the bike city guys would have nabbed it in a heartbeat, put a new paintjob on it and put it to proper use and no one would have said a thing.
I for one am glad my tax dollars arent going to wasting the police force to pursue “crimes” that even the owner doesnt care about. She got her bike back, it was a misunderstanding, the guy was honest enough to appologize, offer his point of view, and throw himself to the wolves. If any of our national politicians did that, by god this country might not be in the right now, and it wouldnt take years to uncover all the fraud and bullsh*t that is constantly preventing any real progress in this country.
Maybe Little Rock takes crime more seriously. Hmmmm, I don’t really see a difference.
http://www.arktimes.com/blogs/arkansasblog/2009/09/candid_camera.aspx#comments
Someone is a position of authority took, or tried to take, something that didn’t belong to them.
The Jordan-azis are at it again.
Strange bunch, they are.
Vote for a guy because you know he won’t DO anything and everything will stay status quo.
What a vision.
Burgerboy, What the hell are you talking about?
Petty stole the bike.
He admits he stole the bike.
The person he stole it from does not want to press charges.
This does not make him a hero.
this makes him a fool.
I am NEVER voting for you again, MATT! That’s probably not even your real name!! YOu LIED about stealing the bike to the police!! YOU LIED again on the free FlYer!! YOU LIED ABOUT THE WHOLE THING!! YOU probably lied when you said you were “too BUSY” to hang out with me!! YOU did the CRIME now do the TIME!!
The trike is now for sale!
http://fayar.craigslist.org/bik/1687040241.html
$200 for that… Maybe $20.
Well I’m taking offers…
Only a fool would ride that trike now that it has tasted human flesh…
Oh my goodness..hasn’t the poor guy received enough grief about this? This is Fayetteville’s own version of a TMZ story- minor celeb errs and and everone gawks, piles on and tries to make a buck off it…sad.
this is the most entertaining stuff ever
What good is a politician if you can’t give them grief?