Online database needed for pawned merchandise
I WOULD like to suggest an alternative to the proposed city ordinance regarding pawnshops, as I believe that it would indeed place unreasonable demands upon pawnbrokers and their honest clients but merely inconvenience criminals. While there are probably not many “young moms with radios to pawn for diapers,” there certainly are many individuals who need some fast cash or simply don’t want to bother with advertising, either online or in the classifieds, and having to deal with the all-too-common bozos who respond. So what if items are never redeemed? That’s not a crime, and I am sure it’s figured into every pawnshop’s business plan.
On the other hand, while I do not agree with her support of the proposed ordinance, I believe that the concerns stated by Vicki Dean Mayhew — “Truckloads of stolen items are being pawned here,” Oct. 29 Journal — regarding the process for identifying stolen items offered for pawn are valid. From what has been reported it appears that the current system for identifying and tracking stolen property in our town is “SO 20th Century,” relying only in part upon computerized (information) but otherwise basically pen-and-paper records that take too long to process. This
should be unacceptable if we are truly the cyber-savvy city our mayor, City Council and so many others claim Albuquerque to be.
What we need to track stolen goods offered for pawn is an online, searchable database accessible to the Albuquerque Police Department and pawnbrokers. When an item is presented for pawn, the pawnbroker could access the database — password-protected, of course — to see if the item has been reported as stolen. If the item is not in the database, he/she could enter the serial number and/or description and ID the seller, making this available to APD in real time; if it is listed he/she or perhaps the system itself could alert the police (of) both a stolen item and possibly the thief in the shop.
APD could also access the database when items are reported as stolen. If they have already been pawned, the police would know where, when, and again possibly by whom. If not, items could be entered so pawnbrokers would know what to look out for. An online database also might be accessible from the computers in APD patrol cars, allowing cops to check items in the possession of suspects encountered in the course of other investigations.
Such a system would not unduly burden pawnbrokers as they already record the necessary information to report to APD; it would simply streamline what is already required. So, if Albuquerque
truly has the profusion of programming prowess we have been told it has, can we not provide such a system? Indeed, why have we not done so already? BRIAN LEAVY Albuquerque