Rabah Zuti asks whether if an armed robber steals the animal from the Shomer's house, and returns it - the Shomer is liable should it subsequently die due to his negligence. On the other hamd, maybe he is Patur because the Shomer's term of guarding came to an end when the animal was stolen from his house. The outcome of the She'eilah is - 'Teiku'.
dear Rabbi, my question is whether the robber is off the hook by returning the item to the SHOMER. would the robber not be obligated to see that it is returned to the owner?
Yours,
Shlomo flam, Rechovot
The answer to your question might depend on the two sides of Raba Zuti's question. If we say that the Shomer's Shemirah has not ended, then returning it to the Shomer is tantamount to returning it to the owner. The Rambam says (Hilchos Erchin, 6:24) that the owner of a Pikadon can be Makdish the Pikadon even when it is still in the posession of the Shomer (as long as the Shomer is not Kofer) because the Reshus of the Shomer is considered to be the Reshus of the owner. If, however, the Shomer's Shemirah is finished, then returning it to the Shomer might be like returning it to any stranger on the street.
It could be, though, that even if his official Shemirah is finished, since he is trusted by the owner to guard his belongings, the thief might fulfill his obligation of Hashavas Gezeilah by returning it to him. Just as we say (Bava Metzia 36a) that Shomer sh'Masar l'Shomer is Patur if the second Shomer is someone that the owner has trusted in the past, so to here we could say that this former Shomer is fitting to be entrusted with the stolen item and the thief has done his Mitzvah.
Kol Tuv,
Yonasan Sigler