Very nicely handled.
Like you, I feel cops have a tough job to do, but they can certainly be a PITA on occasion. I can't help but think that there are times when they more or less beat up on the people that don't fight back. Maybe not. Dunno. I watched with total disgust (on TV) as they stood by and watched a guy get beat to death in Seattle about three years ago, a guy that had gone to the defense of a young gal. Mean time, to make a showing, so they'd look like they were doing something, a cop taps on the window of two gals in a car, then hits them with pepper spray when they rolled the window down. Gotta stop those female terrorists, ya know. Leadership in Seattle law enforcement at that time seemed to be seriously lacking.
At any rate, loved the story, and I can see that with just a little care, the $50 fine can come out of their fund raising. What sweet justice! :-) Talk about shooting one's self in the foot!
We got burglarized last April, and they really hit us hard. We left town to attend to a deceased friends estate and forgot to put the jewelry in the safe. First time ever, as luck would have it. Lost everything but wedding rings that we had with us, and some platinum jewelry that had been put in the safe long ago. They also took a gun and other items, but left in a hurry because the alarm was powered up, although it hadn't been put in service at the time, unlike now. Investigating cop told us that if we wanted to get any of the stuff back, it was up to us to hit the pawn shops, and that we'd not hear from him again. He's been true to his word. I realize they're busy, but they tend to investigate by having things drop in their lap. No breaks, no resolution. Sigh.
Harold