Technically in most jurisdictions in the USA you’re supposed to make a reasonable effort to find the owner (eg asking nearby people if they dropped it)
This makes no sense for loose money. There’s no reasonable way to ID the owner. Anyone can say it’s theirs.
For a wallet, that’s a different story. Even without documents you can ask them to describe how it looks and what’s inside.
I didn’t say it was logical, just what’s written. It’s vague and technically anything with a value of over $20 is included. Currency isn’t specifically included but it’s not excluded either so things like the OP could absolutely occur and even be prosecuted with the way the law is written (at least in NY and other areas with similar statutes)
This makes no sense for loose money. There’s no reasonable way to ID the owner. Anyone can say it’s theirs.
For a wallet, that’s a different story. Even without documents you can ask them to describe how it looks and what’s inside.
I didn’t say it was logical, just what’s written. It’s vague and technically anything with a value of over $20 is included. Currency isn’t specifically included but it’s not excluded either so things like the OP could absolutely occur and even be prosecuted with the way the law is written (at least in NY and other areas with similar statutes)