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By Greg Bartlett

So, you’re a teen, and you don’t always think through the consequences of every action. And this summer, when your friends suggested breaking into a house and getting a few items – for fun – you said okay. Not a big deal, right? You get a little money out of it, but the people don’t lose much, and it’s just for fun.

But there’s bad news. The police just showed up on your front door, and they’re here to arrest you. But no one saw you, so how could they even know? The answer’s fairly simple. One of the items you stole was a television, and the owners had installed a GPS tracking system which allowed them to notify police the moment the television was stolen. Police officers then tracked you right to where you were sitting, enjoying the profits of your venture. And there’s more bad news. The courts really don’t care that it was just for fun. You’re still going to jail.

There is some slightly good news: you’re not alone. Burglars in Florida recently learned the hazards of stealing items with GPS tracking devices when they stole furniture and appliances from a home. The owner notified police the moment his possessions were moved and the police captured the burglars, recovering the stolen items and returning them to their proper owner.

And burglars in Tennessee ran into the same problem. They had been systematically going through rental cabins and taking whatever they wanted, until what they wanted was a flat screen television – a lot like the one you took. Police used the GPS tracking information to catch the burglars, put a stop to the theft, and return the property to the rental cabins.

Actually, a lot of people are starting to use GPS devices to track their possessions, especially expensive ones, appliances, and other items that are often targeted during burglaries. And in the rush of going through a house and trying to get out before someone sees you, you probably won’t have time to go through each item meticulously to determine whether or not it has one of the small devices hidden somewhere on it.

So, yeah, if you really want to have fun this summer, reconsider your decision to burglarize houses. Not only is it wrong and illegal, but the chances of your being caught have risen. And with GPS tracking devices possibly hidden on items, do you really want to take the chance?