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The Student News Site of Thomas S. Wootton High School

Common Sense

The Student News Site of Thomas S. Wootton High School

Common Sense

The Student News Site of Thomas S. Wootton High School

Common Sense

Thievery, ‘scuse me, please me

Thievery, ‘scuse me, please me

A thief: Though the connotation carries the image of a man in a mask and beanie holding a sack of money, there are thieves everywhere. Even in the halls of this school, thieves roam. No, they aren’t planning the great heist of 2017, but they do take other people’s property, especially in the girls’ locker room.

Along the left side of the locker room sit rows and rows of square lockers, too small to fit anything other than gym clothes. As a result, underclassmen put their sports equipment in any empty space they can find, as they don’t have the privilege of storing it in their cars or in the tiny lockers. This empty space includes open areas that any girl in the school has access to.
Students know the risk of leaving their stuff in their locker room all day. A sign is posted saying “If you want to keep it, lock it up!!” Since the lockers are too petite to fit anything and since they have no other place to store their things, they accept the risk, which often leads to stolen property.

The thievery in the locker room is a problem that has continued for years. Junior Raeann Carpenter had $20 stolen out of her bag two years ago during the winter. “I felt pretty annoyed because I thought the locker room was a safe place to keep my stuff,” she said.

Items get stolen no matter if they are inside someone’s bag or just lying around on a bench. Sophomore Kendall Clark had her S’well bottle taken out of her bag. “It was stolen last year during my gym period and I just got it two days before so I was upset.”
Since any girl in the school can go into the locker room where there’s no security, anyone can choose to take what isn’t theirs despite the immorality of it. “Everyday when we would get back from gym everyone’s bags were always unzipped,” Clark said.
It’s difficult to track down when exactly your stuff gets stolen unless you visit your things after every class period. Junior Avery Breen had both sweatpants and a sweatshirt stolen two weeks ago. “I think people just want extra stuff for themselves so if they don’t have something and see it in the locker room, they’ll take it. They also know they probably won’t get caught,” she said.

Though these girls are victims of an unfair situation, there has been no justice for them. None have found their burglars, nor gotten compensation for their things. Though the system is unjust, belongings will continue to be stolen.

However, not everyone has experiences with stolen items. The basketball team has their own room, locked all day and thus, exempt from outside perpetrators. The girls on the team are the only ones allowed to store things in the room since they paid for the renovations, according to senior Katie Gillick.

 

Chloe Perel

News Editor

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