[wp-hackers] Take over plugin development

[Patrick McCoy]

I'm interested in taking over development of a plugin. It hasn't been updated in over a year and a recent WP update has exposed some bugs in the code. I've attempted to contact the current developer but, so far I haven't received a response. 

I could simply create a new plugin with a slightly different name but I'd prefer to update the current code so that anyone using the plugin would get the updates going forward. 

Is their a way to take over ownership of a plugin without involving the current owner?

Thanks

---
Patrick McCoy