On 05/14/2012 07:41 PM, Bill Silverstein wrote: ,
Owners of properties information are a matter of public record in this county. In most states the identities of the owners of corporations are public record. Fictitiously named businesses are a matter of public record. Even if the owners' address of all the above are not listed, in most cases, the identity of the person who is authorized to receive service of process are available.
To which I respond, so what? Yes, real property is subject to public record but it is frequently masked through layers of corporations. There is a beach near here that is so enshrouded by layers of corporations that even the California Coastal Commission can't figure out who owns it. The laws of real property in many US states tend to be rooted in ancient English laws that are largely discredited today - like the ones about "entailing" estates only to the eldest male descendent. Traditions started by William the Conqueror's Domesday Book aren't necessarily wise things to continue without alternation into the modern era. As for corporations - yes they need to publish a service of process point. But that's just for service of process to begin a legal procedure - Here in California it is very frequently the almost unrevealing "C T Corporation System", I'm sure you've run into them and they will and do efficiently forward your missive to whomever. Absent cooperation, penetrating "the corporate veil" to any deeper degree takes a positive accusation supported by evidence. By-the-way, there are more counter-examples than examples of situations in which people who engage in acts are *not* required to make a public disclosure of any sort. For example, I can buy and use a telephone or publish a newpaper or establish a church or walk down the street or give food to a hungry person. I can even buy screwdrivers and hammers and flashlights (oh my) - which could be used for burglary - without presenting any bit of identification.
You also ignore that in a majority of the smaller crimes, that law enforcement will not do anything about it unless handed a nice tidy package with a bow on it.
Ah, the old "if I the voters in my city aren't willing to vote for enough taxes to pay the police to do what I want them to do then I have the right to put on a badge and be a do-it-yourself cop" argument. That kind of person is often called a "vigilante". If one can't convince real law enforcement to take up a matter, then that might be a message that things might not be as bad one thinks. --karl--