Hacker News Reader

Comment by jandrese | Hacker News Reader

Don't fret, people who want to steal your bike are just going to use bolt cutters anyway. Most people who are too lazy to get a real job and resort to burglary are also too lazy to learn how to pick locks.

I'm bummed I live in a lame state that makes it illegal to own lockpicks.

View on HN

I've heard portable/cordless angle grinders are used pretty commonly [1].

I didn't know there was any U.S. state (if that's what you mean by state) that makes it illegal merely to own lockpicks.

You might want to check out the TOOOL state laws page [2], it might be more nuanced than you think. For example you might be OK to own them but not travel with them. Or the burden might be on you to prove lack of intent - but if you only keep them in your own home, that would be easy.

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppZW-PppbtI [2] https://toool.us/laws.html

Virginia makes it a crime to have lockpicks on your person in the process of committing a burglary. The next line states that having lockpicks on your person is considered proof that you are committing burglary.

https://law.lis.virginia.gov/vacode/title18.2/chapter5/secti...

Good point. But a counterpoint is, it's impossible to commit a burglary if you're in your own home or vehicle. You have a legal right to be there (by full ownership or a lease granting possession), so burglary isn't possible there.

He doesn't just pick locks - he also looks at difficulty of using bolt cutters, hydraulic cutters, angle grinders, etc. to break locks where relevant.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com