The Official Verdict in the stolen iPhone Case (Calacanis)

Everyone is entitled to their opinion... and to having it slaughtered on HN!

There's a little room for flexibility here. Engadget published the finder's photos of it on 4-17 - apparently he sent photos to several media outlets in hope that one would reward him for it. Although it would have been more appropriate to forward any such communication to the police, if Gizmodo had got it, taken some pics or video that did not go any farther that what was already published, and then sent or brought it over to Apple HQ - the same county Jason Chen lives in - they could legitimately argue the $5000 was for the story of how the guy got it, the legal doctrine of prior restraint gave them the right to publish, and they had carried out their duty to reunite Apple with their property. And I think they'd have been legally and ethically OK.

It's the dissection, its publication, and the withholding of the device from its owners - even after they called to request its return - that has gotten them into real trouble.

How is finding something that someone lost make it "stolen property?" If I find a $20 bill on the sidewalk, am I stealing it if I pick it up?

Legally this is covered by "trade secret" law, not theft. (IANAL)

Yes. This random email from some list, which was reposted to a blog, carries more weight than any judge's opinion ever will. It is sad, but such is the state of affairs in our world.

I do not think that word means what you think it means.

Well, there isn't an actual 'Jason Nation' either, so I can forgive a little tongue-in-cheek pomposity by its leader :)