Smartphones Driving Violent Crime Across US 204
alphadogg writes "Incidents of cellphone theft have been rising for several years and are fast becoming an epidemic. IDG News Service collected data on serious crimes in San Francisco from November to April and recorded 579 thefts of cellphones or tablets, accounting for 41 percent of all serious crime. In just over half the incidents, victims were punched, kicked or otherwise physically intimidated for their phones, and in a quarter of robberies, users were threatened with guns or knives. This isn't just happening in tech-loving San Francisco, either. The picture is similar across the United States. A big reason for such thefts, until recently, is that there had been little to stop someone using a stolen cellphone. Reacting to pressure from law enforcement and regulators, the U.S.'s largest cellphone carriers agreed early last year to establish a database of stolen cellphones."
Ban Smartphones (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Ban Smartphones (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Ban Smartphones (Score:4, Funny)
When smartphones are outlawed, only outlaws will have smartphones!
Re:Ban Smartphones (Score:5, Funny)
What about our right to bear ARMs?
Re:There's no real excuse for violence (Score:5, Funny)
There's no real excuse for punching someone or threatening them with violence when taking their smartphone.
If they are making a call while the rest of us are trying to watch the movie, I think this treatment should be mandatory.