I only have one regret about shooting that car leaving my drive after they messed with my boat. That was that I didn't aim a couple of feet higher instead of trying to get tires and gas tank. Should it ever happen again you can bet I will shoot higher.

A little section from senate bill 378...

The actor's belief that the force was
immediately necessary as described by this subsection is presumed
to be reasonable if the actor knew or had reason to believe that the
person against whom the force was used:
(1) unlawfully entered, or was attempting to enter
unlawfully, the actor's habitation, vehicle, or place of business
or employment;

I hope that video leads to an arrest.

All - just to chime in on what the law will do......our home office has about 40 acres of heavy trucks and equipment with multiple gates. We were loosing 'core' batteries and small parts at an alarming rate......one of the guys set up the battery pallet with a trigger hooked to an air horn. When the air horn went off, the employees rushed and shut the gates. The thieves nearly ran over one of our guys, crashed the gate but didn't make it through. When he saw our reception party for him he called the cops himself! He had to be subdued a bit but things were under control when the police showed up. He is suspected in multiple thefts, just about mashed one of our employees and did many thousands of dollars in damage to gates and premises.

He spent one night in jail and was released next am.

I can relate a similar story (less the night in jail) for a couple of low lives caught breaking in my mothers home.

fact is you lock your house to be safe /you lock your car to be safe/you lock your boxes on your boat so there not easy to access it not the fact that you left something in your boat/house/car its the fact that people are sorry enough to not work but yet take stuff that a honest man works his a@@ off for so everybody should stop saying you should do this and that fact is its time to take a stand and put a bullet in these scumbags arse

Come on guys take 10 min to just clean your boat out and put it in your room. I'm not a very smart guy by no means but, I didn't have to read this kinda stuff but one time to know that it could happen to me. I'm not taking up for the people stealing but stop helping them out and put your stuff up! It should be a habbit just like wearing you life jacket to clean it out. I not trying to start any IT that my $1.00 worth to bad that everybody want do it and I will be reading about it again.

I've seen this same thread a hundred times. It's always the same... The thieves are criminals plain and simple, but that doesn't change the fact that if there is nothing in the boat to take, they will not get away with any of your stuff.

I'd rather spend the 5 or 10 minutes unloading the boat than wait around for a couple hours for the cops to show up and take my statement.

I hope they catch these guys, but I am going to continue to unload the boat. All they'll find is unlocked, empty compartments.

well, we have not ever had anything stolen at our dock. But i had better be knocking on wood by the sounds of things. I don't know about hirin patrol or anything, but I can tell you when we go to Amistad and stay at Angler's Lodge, the owner is the patrol. He has parking lot blocked off so only one way in and one way out and the parking lots really lit up. And i don't know for sure, but i think he probably has a license to carry a weapon. I know this is slow time on fork, but if only two people protected staying at a place then all worth it.I think the camera idea is good and lots of them from all angles.Good for the marina to install them. Maybe alarms also installed on motion cameras too......blocking entrances to only one- and maybe something like a wire tobattery or something that would shock them and sound an alarm or if a rod lid raised, a blast of non washable dye hit them. I can't imagine any anglers staying at a place would object. We all need to brainstorm and come up with some good ideas that would be marketable. Merry Christmas.

Sorry to hear about this. I had just talked to Steve that evening and he was excited about the tourney (he had found a bunch of fish). I know the losses are devastating because of the sentimental value for you Steve. My prayers are for you as well as the thieves.

So let me get this straight: As honest hard working anglers, we are now suppose to unload the unbeleivable amount of tackle and rods out of our storage compartments so that some meth head can't steal it from our boats? I don't really want to shoot anyone but I am sick of having to go through all of the precautions because some low life meth head in East Texas has no other means of getting their drug money than stealing my stuff. I love our lake house and love our East Texas lakes but this has to stop. Get off the drugs and pull your own weight in society. Get with the program or someone is going to shoot you.

No, but that doesn't mean that the extra 10 minutes won't save you the headache later. It's just another way to ensure your stuff will be there the next day. There's a lot of valuable fishing tackle stolen every year at Lake Fork. I'm not sure of the stats, but I don't think most of it comes from inside a lock, occupied motel room.

On another note, I just sleep better knowing my stuff is in my room. It also gives me a chance to retie and organize for the next day. I tend not to pack as much stuff, which also keeps me more organized. There are some benefits to taking your tackle out of the boat.

I have also been reading these 'theft' reports for years!

All my rods and reels get taken into the room, as well as my tackle.

Rod lockers are unlocked, the bastages can have my soiled, sweat-stained life jacket(s), tangled net, bow/stern lights, and the ham sandwich I left in the cooler!

This isnt a hard problem to cure.

I got one of these, I keep in my rod locker. Problem solved.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=geynA-JYDHE

I Had my pole and tackle box lifted out of my truck at the spillway below Canyon Dam I went down there for a min to check water levels came back it was gone. Its sad that these people have nothing better to do than steal the stuff that you worked for. Tackle is expensive and takes a long time to acquire thank God it wasn't my other box with most my lures including a bunch my dad gave me. Should put a small cheapo tackle box in the open with a rattlesnake in it.

Get the pictures posted and the guys down here at Fork will try to identify these jerks. This stuff is happening everywhere--not just at Fork. Rayburn and Toledo have been hit hard to, along with Ray Roberts. WE catch them every once in a while though. If you have a boat storage, just make sure you get a lock they can't cut. There are some good ones on the market and they only coat about $10.00 Have a Merry Christmas no matter what. This was only stuff. Families are what's important.