ABSTRACT
As e-commerce has increased exponentially in recent years, so too has the porch piracy epidemic. One in five Americans claims to have had a package stolen from his doorstep. In an effort to combat this new crime trend, many states have recently adopted new criminal laws aimed at deterring porch pirates, including Texas in 2019. Despite these new laws and initiatives by state legislatures, there is little evidence that these laws are resulting in their desired deterrent effect. This Comment examines the source of the porch piracy problem as well as the economic, legal, and moral incentives and resources in play. This Comment argues that the law should facilitate more private action, rather than public prosecution, in combatting porch piracy because the private sector has stronger incentives and better resources to tackle a problem of its own doing.
Drew McKay, The Porch Pirate Problem, 59 Houston Law Review 455 (2021).
First posted 2021-12-09 18:10:41
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