When is private property off limits, even for electric cars?

Nissan Leaf unveiling
The Nissan Leaf unveiling in Los Angeles
Nissan Leaf
Plugged in Leaf

There is a fine line between taking something from someone and stealing, right?  But how do we exactly define and justify that fine line?  In other words, is it OK for someone to use a school’s electricity to recharge his electric car?  Is five cents and two to three miles worth it, when you have been warned and told never to come back?  Is it any wonder the local Georgian police treated this instance as a crime?

Obviously, we can see the situation from many angles but the best one to start with is the bird’s eye view.  Why would someone drive and use electricity somewhere other than home or a designated charging area, without asking?  This type of action is systemic of our society that feels less and less boundaries and walks over without batting a lash, at times on private properties.

 

A Public School on Private Grounds.

Last we checked, school grounds are highly regulated.  You might consider this “public,” bit one thing is clear: it is not always open to the public, that area with registration.  Even though the electric vehicle driver, EV said no one was there, does it make it alright to start plugging in at a school or on a private land?

Much as we are pointing to, the culprit is the individuals who feels it is OK for him to tap into what you and I, including him pay for, at a public entity, such as a school.  Still, no matter how public a school is, it is on highly regulated private grounds and gives no one the right to tap into what we all pay for collectively.  Should that person proceed to refund us the 0.000001 cent he stole from his local community?

Nicolas Zart
Born and raised around classic cars, it wasn't until Nicolas drove an AC Proulsion eBox and a Tesla Roadster that the light went on. Eager to spread the news about those amazing full torque electric vehicles, he started writing about this amazing technology and its social impacts in 2007. Today, Nicolas covers renewable energy, test drives cars, does podcasts and films. Nicolas offers an in-depth look at the e-mobility world through interviews and the many contacts he made in those industries. His articles are also published on Teslrati, CleanTechnica, the Beverly Hills Car Club and Medium. "There are more solutions than obstacles." Nicolas Zart