There is an older gentleman, perhaps in his 70s, who arrives at the store soon after sunup every morning with his golden retriever, no matter the weather, and sorts through all nine of our outdoor trash pales in search of aluminum cans. I'm not sure how he can stand the stench. Some of our outdoor trash gets pretty raunchy. I hold my breath every time I have to change the garbage bags.
In some places this guy would be known as a "binner" -- a person who searches through trash to collect recyclable materials.
The first few times I saw him I thought he might be homeless, in need of whatever little change he could earn selling the aluminum cans. He dresses the part; old, tattered baggy pants and shirt. When I talked to him I could tell he was a kind and intelligent man. This morning I learned a bit more: He earned his J.D. from the University of Montana Law School, worked man years as a criminal prosecutor and is now a city attorney. He walks around to various stores collecting cans mostly for the exercise. He also says he would hate to see all those cans end up in the landfill. He donates the them to various charities that cash them in for money.
He's an attorney by trade; a charitable binner by hobby.
And in case you're wondering: A 1988 California
v. Greenwood case in the U.S. Supreme Court held that "there is no common
law expectation of privacy for discarded materials." There are,
however, limits to what can legally be taken from a company's refuse. In a 1983
Minnesota case involving the theft of customer lists from a garbage can the owner of the discarded information was awarded $500,000 in damages. He had a good attorney.
No need for an attorney if you're just collecting aluminum cans -- unless you want him to help.
No need for an attorney if you're just collecting aluminum cans -- unless you want him to help.
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