Well, it really depends on the situation. If the trash is on public property (curbside for the trash collector), you are not trespassing if you retrieve something from it. Always be careful to leave everything as you found it (minus the find, of course
), i.e., don't dump out trash containers and spread mess around.If this is a private dumpster on PRIVATE PROPERTY, then you have another situation all together. I have retrieved dishes from dumpsters on private property without asking (most recently, an apartment complex behind me had a DirecTV Slimline dish laying on top of the dumpster), but in many cases, I will stop in and simply ask (especially commercial establishments).
