Have you considered, for a moment, that the thief ever being able to register the device as their own is the entirety of the problem?
The owner of the device doesn't own the keys to it, apple does. That's how the OP lost access in the first place.
I will admit that, this situation was preventable, had apple required the "find my device" feature to be active upon setup. The fact is however, they do not.
You can't have it both ways, if you're going to have a walled garden, then wall off the garden, no half measures, you're responsible for everything, including this mishap.
The owner of the device doesn't own the keys to it, apple does. That's how the OP lost access in the first place.
I will admit that, this situation was preventable, had apple required the "find my device" feature to be active upon setup. The fact is however, they do not. You can't have it both ways, if you're going to have a walled garden, then wall off the garden, no half measures, you're responsible for everything, including this mishap.