How the Grinch Stole Christmas: A Real-Life Edition


Grinch stealing a star like “porch pirates” steal people’s Christmas gifts.

Samantha Moilanen, Editor

How the Grinch Stole Christmas: A Real-Life Edition

The Christmas season is a time of extensive gift-giving and last-minute Amazon orders two days before the holiday, but what if all your gifts went missing? In the United States, about eleven million packages are stolen every year.

People across the country have been seeing their packages disappear for decades as the thieves named “porch pirates” have perfected the concept of grab-and-go. These porch pirates complete their Christmas crimes by running up to people’s homes and snatching their packages right off their front porches. According to CNBC, Amazon and many large corporations have released ways to prevent this thievery including; taking advantage of the new Amazon Locker, asking your carrier to place your package in an out-of-sight location, or by purchasing a BoxLock. All of these methods are available to prevent porch pirates from stealing, but even with these prevention methods in place, these thieves are still taking place on an everyday basis. 

“My mom buys all her gifts online for every Christmas, and this new law will hopefully make her feel a lot more reassured,” said senior Elain Xu.

One of the primary reasons this abstract type of thievery has taken place for so many years is because many times, it widely goes unpunished. Up until Monday, December 16th, porch pirates could not be punished under Michigan Law. Now, Senate Bill 0023 makes stealing packages a punishable crime where one can be charged with anywhere from a misdemeanor to a felony, earning up to five years in prison. This bill was developed unanimously to combat the theft of all mail and packages left on doorsteps making it a punishable crime that can be prosecuted locally. 

Amazon Locker at Whole Foods.

Furthermore, this crime has become increasingly common in recent years due to how easy it is to pull-off. One Grand Rapids news article claims these crimes are almost impossible to prove unless someone has the theft recorded on home cameras or another device. Although, even with a recording, it is very difficult to pinpoint who is committing the crime. Nevertheless, this law may not completely eliminate the stealing, but it should deter more people from participating in this crime in the future. Even though the human vice of theft will never be completely eliminated, laws like this one are put into place to deter thieves and help keep your packages en route to their proper destination. 

“We probably order over thirty gifts, and I think making it illegal will not stop people from doing it, but it will stop repeat offenses if they are caught,” said senior Zach Adams.

Although this crime does not only take place during the holidays, it is much more prevalent due to the copious amount of orders coming in for the gift-giving season. This year, this new law may give people a sense of security in having their packages shipped to their homes once more this Christmas season.