my son stole back his mp3 player - help!

[tomykoz]

I live in ohio - my son had a $150 mp3 player stolen at school. He sees the same one months later in the hands of another student. he asks to look at it. He sees a scratch he put on it prior to it being stolen so he would know that it was his if it got stolen. He tells the student ,this is a nice player. The student says "yea,but i do not know how to put music on it". My son offers to do it for him and when the person goes to the rest room my son takes the player and hides it. Then my son goes to the rest room too and says to the other student"i put music on the player and i left the player on your desk."...when the student sees its gone he tells my son you stole my player...my son lies and said someone must have taken it....my son felt he had to steal back what was his and is now being acused of stealing and they said they are going to small claims court....no one saw my son take it...and the player is still in school where my son hid it cause i told him do not bring it home and that even though he knows its his the person he stole it back from evidently bought it from who ever stole it from my son...what do i do?....please help me,we are not thieves and i told my son he should have never done that .

[Viktorr]

Well, first off, did you or your son save any of the documentation / packaging / receipts for the MP3 player? Specifically, do you have any documentation that has a serial number (NOT model number) which could be matched to a serial number on the MP3 player? If so, you have proof that the MP3 player is yours, and an investigation of where the other student got the MP3 player from could turn up the original thief. However, there are problems with this as well, as the original thief could claim to have bought it from your son (if no police report was filed when it happened) and claim your son is trying to lie to get the player back.

A scratch on the MP3 player does not equate to proof that it was your sons device. Proof in this case would possibly be date-tagged photographic evidence, and witnesses to the mark if you're just going by that scratch. Also, your son was the last person to be seen with the MP3 player, and therefore is considered highly suspicious. Your son has no proof that the person he took the MP3 player was the one who stole it, or an innocent victim of buying something that was illegally obtained, and has broken the law himself regardless of how sure he is that the device is his.

I don't know what a small claims court would rule in this instance, but you'd better check to see if you have that documentation that could be reference to the serial number on the device. Otherwise, it'll make an already bad situation worse. As his parent, and someone who knows now what he did, if you cannot come up with that evidence then you better be prepared to tell your son to return the device immediately and work to trying to diffuse the whole situation. That's your job as a parent.

[tomykoz]

we have packaging from the best buy we bought it from but cant find the reciept.....i cant believe my son did this after all weve taught him.....im going to make him put it back on her desk tommorrow...i know they have already filled a small claims report.....its pretty sad to know something that is yours and you cant get it back but i guess its a lesson learned.....i know they will press charges even if its returned,,,,they are that way it seems.....but you are right....it will only get worse and it never pays to lie....thanks for the advice

[Viktorr]

I hope things go well. Sometimes the most difficult thing a kid can do is "the right thing", and yeah, there'll be consequences for his actions. However, returning the device is the first step to making things right, even if he doesn't "feel" it's the right thing to do. I've been there myself, so I know how it is.

[tomykoz]

we found the reciept with serial number and it matches the one he hid....now what?

[Viktorr]

Originally Posted by tomykoz we found the reciept with serial number and it matches the one he hid....now what?

Well, you probably want to go to the authorities now, and hand over the MP3 player and copy of the receipt / serial number, and have it investigated. Your son might not get the MP3 player back for a while, but if the other kid's parents take you to small claims court, you have some leeway there. The situation is already complicated by what your son did, but now that you have some actual proof, you've got a chance.

Was there ever a report made to the police / authorities when it was originally stolen from your son? If so, see if you can get a written report about it.

In all honesty though, one thing I'd really recommend is you contact a lawyer in your area just to consult on this (not on a message board. Call em up and see if they will do a free consultation. Then set up an appointment to see them). A lot of lawyers will do a 1-time consultation for free, and it'll give you a better idea on how to go about this.

EDIT: Also, make absolutely sure it's a serial number and not a model number. Serial numbers are unique to each device, unlike model numbers.