Three-fourths of Americans have been victimized by porch pirates.
Over the last 12 months, 260 million packages worth $19.5 billion were stolen.
The worst city in America for porch thefts is San Francisco; second-worst is the Seattle-Tacoma metro area (see story here).
Porch theft crimes are proliferating because it’s quick and easy, with low odds of apprehension once you escape the baseball-bat-wielding homeowner, and all that requires is stronger legs and faster feet than he has. This is why some homeowners may prefer shotguns loaded with rock salt or birdshot, ill-tempered Rottweiler dogs, or concealing punji pits in their front yards (which aren’t legal, however).
None of the legal methods of deterring porch thefts are quite as convenient as violence, but you can readily find deterrence strategies on the internet, e.g. here and here. Another approach is making porch thievery more trouble than it’s worth by living in a hard-to-reach location (see photo below; apply for occupancy here).
I don’t know what the solution is, or if there is one. All I know for sure is porch pirates are thieves and deserve being treated as criminals. If you tackle one fleeing with your goods and they sue you for broken teeth from faceplanting on the sidewalk, if I’m on the jury they won’t get a cent.
