Geleidebaken “stelen”

[sbgelanxiety]

Hello,

I apologize for this English post. I do not know what to do.

I’m an international student in the Netherlands being accused of stealing a red-white traffic sign (geleidebaken). Basically, we’d gone out with friends, we were on our way home at 3 AM and we saw one of them lying on the bike path. We were doing a project where we helped the community (we’d also picked up trash before) so I suggested we put it somewhere else so that people don’t trip on it. We were going to take a picture of me removing it and we would add it to our collection. While I was picking it up, a police officer came up to me and told me I was stealing it. I explained to him the situation. He said it was a crime to be carrying it around and I said he saw me pick it up and take a photo with it and I had only moved it a couple of meters.

Yesterday I received a strafbeschikking from the court that I had to pay 259 euros for putting people in danger/risk by being mischevious towards my surroundings. I do not have an issue with paying the fine if the thing I did was bad but I lodged an appeal because I do not want it to appear on my criminal record.

Do you think I can get out of this? My arguments are:
1) No one was harmed by my picking the sign up. In fact, it was on the bike path and could have been dangerous.
2) We saw the officers and continued because we didn’t want them to think we were stealing it. We thought they would come and ask us what we were doing and they would take it back. My friends were also drunk (I don’t drink as I’m a Muslim) so they didn’t really know how to act.
3) I didn’t intend to take the sign with me. It was just a regular geleidebaken that I wouldn’t want anyways. I also am not big enough to carry it.

TL;DR: I just touched a sign and I cannot believe I am being fined for it

[SWAT]

You are asking an oponion on a case of which we do not know the specifics and only your view on what has happend.
I advise you to consult a laywer.

[Proost]

Do you think I can get out of this? My arguments are:
1) No one was harmed by my picking the sign up. In fact, it was on the bike path and could have been dangerous.

The felony you comitted doesn't say harming someone is a element of that felony.

2) We saw the officers and continued because we didn’t want them to think we were stealing it. We thought they would come and ask us what we were doing and they would take it back. My friends were also drunk (I don’t drink as I’m a Muslim) so they didn’t really know how to act.

If you knew in advance, why didn't you put it back in the first place?

3) I didn’t intend to take the sign with me. It was just a regular geleidebaken that I wouldn’t want anyways. I also am not big enough to carry it.

If you didn't want tot take it? Then why did you perservere? You just said you took it and walked a couple of meters, that's taking a sign as the matter of fact.

I don't see any reason to believe a judge will dismiss the ticket with this argumentation.

[Frans]

You weren't fined for stealing the traffic sign, you were fined for an article we call "baldadigheid", it means, you don't have to take away the sign but with doing so the possibility arises of bringing other people in danger. And only that, the possibility of... is enough for this fine, indeed a strafbeschikking.

The exact (dutch) article 424 from the criminal book of law:

Wetstekst

1. Hij die op of aan de openbare weg of op enige voor het publiek toegankelijke plaats tegen personen of goederen enige baldadigheid pleegt waardoor gevaar of nadeel kan worden teweeggebracht, wordt, als schuldig aan straatschenderij, gestraft met geldboete van de eerste categorie.
2. Indien tijdens het plegen van de overtreding nog geen jaar is verlopen sedert een vroegere veroordeling van de schuldige wegens gelijke overtreding onherroepelijk is geworden, kan hechtenis van ten hoogste drie dagen of geldboete van de eerste categorie worden opgelegd.

You are asking if you can get out of this, well, you can always appeal every fine, even a strafbeschikking. But before you see a judge it is a administrative process where the prosecutor will make a judgement based on the evidence (the police report and especially any remarks on there) and if that isn't enough he will ask an additional report from the "fining officer". And his word weighs heavy in the Netherlands. So if your first appeal is, administratively "denied" you can appeal a second time an go to a judge. That is a right you really do have and a judge will see the case again.

My 2 cents, you were fined in accordance to the law, based on your story. You can ask yourself if it was neccesary to do so at 3 am... but that is the choice of that officer, he made that choice.

Be aware, if you want to appeal you need to this within a certain time (2 weeks i think but someone else will correct me if i'm wrong), make sure you do because they wont even handle the appeal if it's too late.

Hope this helps and good luck,

[Mir81]

I am amazed by the amount of messages we get here from international students who have committed a crime in this country and got a fine or some other kind of punishment.

Just behave and don't break the law. It's not that difficult.