Money falling from an armored truck?

That may sound pretty far-fetched, but it can and has happened.

Take a recent six-month period. In August 2014, an armored truck left the Revel Casino Hotel in Atlantic City with a bag of money sitting on its roof. Video recordings show that it remained there unnoticed when the truck stopped at another casino. Sometime after that, however, the bag fell off, and the $21,000 it contained was never recovered.

Two months later—on Halloween, to be precise—a bag of money worth an undisclosed sum spilled out of the rear door of an armored car after the door’s lock malfunctioned.

Numerous drivers on their morning commute along I-270 in Frederick County, Maryland, pulled over and hopped out of their cars to grab as much cash as they could. Then on Christmas Eve of the same year, nearly $2 million tumbled out of the back of an armored vehicle in a crowded business district of Hong Kong, creating havoc as pedestrians and motorists alike scrambled for the money. And, finally, back in New York a month later, the back door of an armored vehicle popped open on the Long Island Expressway—exactly why is uncertain—and a bag containing $178,000 fell out. When it hit the ground, it sent $20 and $100 bills flying through the air, which caused drivers to screech to a halt to chase the fluttering cash. When it was all over, only $40 was recovered.

After each of these accidents, local police appealed to people to return the scattered money to its rightful owners, saying that those who kept it might be guilty of theft. Whether anyone heeded their pleas has not been declosed.

Discussion Questions 1. If you encountered a situation like those described, what would you do—turn the money into the authorities, grab what you can and keep it, or just ignore the whole thing? What factors would influence your decision?
Is the decision a moral decision or some other kind of decision?
2. Is it dishonest to keep money that falls from an armored vehicle? Is it theft? In your opinion, what would be the right thing to do? Explain the values or moral principles that support your answer.
3. Some people think that if you take the money, you are hurting no one. Is that true? Would it make a difference if the money had fallen out of someone’s purse or briefcase rather than out of an armored car? When and under what circumstances would you return property or money that you found to its rightful owner?
4. Do these cases pit morality against self-interest?
Which of the following is true of you: “I am willing to do the right thing:

(a) always,

(b) only if the sacrifice is not too great,

(c) only if doing so doesn’t inconvenience me or cost me anything, or

(d) only if doing so benefits me in some way”?
5. What factors explain why some people rush to take money that has fallen from a truck while others do not? In your view, to what extent is people’s behavior in such situations influenced by what they see other people doing?
6. Does the principle “Finders Keepers” apply to cases like these?