Ring return - Need opinions

[SusanMN]

So I had a bit up luck in the lake and pulled up a diamond engagement ring. Not huge or expensive, but still I want to get it back to its owner. I call the lifeguard shack and ask if anyone posted a lost ring. They bounce me to the park office that asks me to describe the ring and then say yes, someone called about it, but they can't give me a phone number. They want me to bring it in to them. I guess I don't trust that the ring will really get back to the owner but will end up in the pocket of a park worker. I have posted it on Craig's list but nothing.

What do you all think? Turn it it and take a chance or hang onto it? Or?

 

[cudamark]

Cuda-mark , what you're saying is true , presuming the owner could be found . But as i understand the question here, is should we all just indiscriminately give things to lifegaurds , rangers , police , etc...

I don't advocate anything of the sort. The less the government is involved in our lives, the better. I was responding to Mccloud39's post where he said "finders keepers" without giving a thought to finding the owner. I'm not saying you need to go to extraordinary measures to find the owner but a simple CL ad or some other web site doesn't take much time out of your busy day and it may mean the world to someone who has lost a family heirloom or their wedding ring. Not everyone who has lost something is irresponsible. There many reasons and ways to lose things.

 

[trainermick]

I learned my lesson back in 1979. A lifeguard told me that an American tourist had lost a platinum ring with a 1 carat diamond and 2 1/2 caret diamonds. It's value was $15000. Needless to say, I found it a couple of days later and went to the Ranger office to get the name of the person who lost it. They told me don't worry, give it to them and they will make sure that it is returned to the owner. I gave it to the ranger and of course didn't ask for a receipt or anything. After I didn't hear anything I went back to inquire thinking that I might at least get a thankyou note or someyhing from the owner. The ranger told me that the lady came in the next day after I handed it in to see if it was found and they gave it to her. They gave her my name and she told them that she would send me a reward but nothing. To this day, I have a feeling that the Rangers wife got herself a nice ring. Lesson learned !!!!!

 

[dholland02]

I learned my lesson back in 1979. A lifeguard told me that an American tourist had lost a platinum ring with a 1 carat diamond and 2 1/2 caret diamonds. It's value was $15000. Needless to say, I found it a couple of days later and went to the Ranger office to get the name of the person who lost it. They told me don't worry, give it to them and they will make sure that it is returned to the owner. I gave it to the ranger and of course didn't ask for a receipt or anything. After I didn't hear anything I went back to inquire thinking that I might at least get a thankyou note or someyhing from the owner. The ranger told me that the lady came in the next day after I handed it in to see if it was found and they gave it to her. They gave her my name and she told them that she would send me a reward but nothing. To this day, I have a feeling that the Rangers wife got herself a nice ring. Lesson learned !!!!!

I dnt hunt beach much but if someone came to me and say they lost it I'd be glad to help them but if I find one and noone around that baby is in my pocket and heading to the jewelry store.

 

[Keppy]

Cuda-mark , what you're saying is true , presuming the owner could be found . But as i understand the question here, is should we all just indiscriminately give things to lifegaurds , rangers , police , etc...

I would not give any thing i find to the police , ranger ,Ect....... As a matter of fact i never even tell any one of the things i find.......... I don't tell what i find on the treasure foums.... I don't put up pictures of any thing i find........... All my detecting life and treasure hunting life.... I tell no one any thing............ And i have been really happy that way........... You lose it i find it..... It's mine................ No one but myself needs to know what i find...................

 

[dholland02]

I would not give any thing i find to the police , ranger ,Ect....... As a matter of fact i never even tell any one of the things i find.......... I don't tell what i find on the treasure foums.... I don't put up pictures of any thing i find........... All my detecting life and treasure hunting life.... I tell no one any thing............ And i have been really happy that way........... You lose it i find it..... It's mine................ No one but myself needs to know what i find...................

Keppy I completely 100% agree with u. I was just in a massive argument about that in another post, what u find is yours were the ones out there finding this stuff why souls I hand a thing over. The only exception is if they just lost it and were lookin for it I'd give a hand, but rest goes in my pocket and into my jar .

 

[Tom_in_CA]

I learned my lesson back in 1979. A lifeguard told me that an American tourist had lost a platinum ring with a 1 carat diamond and 2 1/2 caret diamonds. It's value was $15000. Needless to say, I found it a couple of days later and went to the Ranger office to get the name of the person who lost it. They told me don't worry, give it to them and they will make sure that it is returned to the owner. I gave it to the ranger and of course didn't ask for a receipt or anything. After I didn't hear anything I went back to inquire thinking that I might at least get a thankyou note or someyhing from the owner. The ranger told me that the lady came in the next day after I handed it in to see if it was found and they gave it to her. They gave her my name and she told them that she would send me a reward but nothing. To this day, I have a feeling that the Rangers wife got herself a nice ring. Lesson learned !!!!!

trainermick, good story. Thanx for telling it. Who knows if your suspicions are true or not. Let's hope not, and let's hope her lack of a "thankyou" was just lost in the mail, etc...

I have often wondered that if I were to dutifully turn in anything valuable I find (a rolex watch, a diamond ring, etc...) to the police dept lost & found (as technically required in each state's laws), if the same thing you hinted at, might not also occur. Ie.: that after 30 days, I go to see if anyone claimed it (so as to "get it back after 30 days"), only to be told "it got claimed". I would think that the cops would be under no obligation to tell you who they gave the item too, since ........ afterall..... there's privacy laws and such, right?

It would seem all too easy for the person at the counter to merely pick up the phone, call his cousin Ralph, and say "hey Ralph, you want a nice rolex watch? Come down to the station and describe a such & such watch, found at such & such location, and presto, you'll have a nice rolex". And while it would seem "dastardly" for someone in the position of authority to do such a thing, think of it: In the eyes of the police (or ranger or whatever), you only FOUND it. It's NOT YOURS in the first place. You gave it to them FULLY expecting that it might be claimed, and you might not get it back. So in their eyes, what have you lost? Nothing. It wasn't yours to begin with. So it might seem justifiable in a twisted sense to them, that no one's worse off, and what would you care, since it wasn't yours, to begin with?

 

[cudamark]

That's why I don't give much info in a CL ad. I wouldn't say I found a Rolex, I would say I found a watch....period. Contact me with detailed description and area lost. If the police want to come knock at my door and confiscate the watch, they're going to get a cheap kids watch that has been in the surf for 20 years. I don't trust anyone when money is involved....I don't care who it is or how much "authority" they have.
Dholland02, you learned at least two lessons here, don't trust anyone, as you mentioned, and if you have to turn something in like that, take a photo and get a receipt on an official form.