Is it illegal to throw away someone else's belongings?

This question often arises in 'boy friend - girl friend" situations or marital fights and dissolutions. Tthe answer is NO, you do not have the authority or right to dispose of property belonging to someone else. If you wish to remove or dispose of it you must at least notify the other party of your intentions and give them a 'reasonable' amount of time to come and retrieve them. If they do not retreive them within that reasonable time period you have the right to charge them a nominal storage fee.