ATLANTA — It happens every day - and it seems to be happening more an more as our shopping habits change. Thieves stealing your package right off your front porch.
According to a study in the New York Times, 1.7 million packages are stolen or go missing every day.
Even with technology, such as Ring cameras, the thieves don't seem to care.
In most cases in Georgia, porch piracy is only a misdemeanor for two reasons. First, the packages they are stealing usually don't value more than $500. The other reason is that the thieves are not technically stealing from the United States Postal Service, but instead private delivery services - FedEx, UPS, Amazon - that don't fall under federal protection.
Stealing packages is typically covered under the state's "theft by taking" statute, a misdemeanor.
Help could be on the way, and a new bill proposed by State Rep. Bonnie Rich (R-Suwanee) could make thieves think twice about stealing your package - no matter what the value is.
The proposed bill to amend the official code reads as follows: "relating to theft, so as to provide for the crime of theft by possession of stolen mail; to provide for the crime of porch piracy; to provide for definitions; to provide for penalties; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes."
It goes on to say that a person who violates the code would "be guilty of a felony and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than one nor more than five years."
Several other states are looking to, or have already, passed similar bills to apply stiffer penalties.
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