The Sound Guy
Pursuit Driver
Foxnews
Summary -
California's Prop 47 led to the reduction of shoplifting to a misdemeanor to free up resource for police and prosecutors to focus on violent offenders. Supported by the state Democratic Party and championed by the American Civil Liberties Union, the referendum was passed by a wide margin in 2014.
All it did was create a licence to steal.
Are Liberals really Aliens that disguise themselves as humans and don't have a clue how the human world operates? This is insane.
And then, to make matters worse:
Hate to say it, but the sooner the "BigOne" hits and wipes out San Fran and LA, the better off this country will be.
Summary -
California's Prop 47 led to the reduction of shoplifting to a misdemeanor to free up resource for police and prosecutors to focus on violent offenders. Supported by the state Democratic Party and championed by the American Civil Liberties Union, the referendum was passed by a wide margin in 2014.
All it did was create a licence to steal.
Are Liberals really Aliens that disguise themselves as humans and don't have a clue how the human world operates? This is insane.
SAN FRANCISCO – In a lighted garage on one of San Francisco's busiest streets, a young man in baggy trousers and messy brown hair pulled down his pants. He had been hiding two pairs of stolen jeans with the tags still on them. He handed them to another man waiting nearby, took some money, pulled up his pants and headed back into another store on Market Street — home to the city's high-end designers and big-chain retail shops.
The incident wasn't a one-off. These brazen acts of petty theft and shoplifting are a dangerous and all-too-common consequence of Proposition 47, a referendum passed five years ago that critics say effectively gives shoplifters and addicts the green light to commit crimes as long as the merchandise they steal or the drugs they take are less than $950 in value. The decision to downgrade theft of property valued below the arbitrary figure from felony to misdemeanor, together with selective enforcement that focuses on more “serious” crimes, has resulted in thieves knowing they can brazenly shoplift and merchants knowing the police will not respond to their complaints, say critics.
Since Proposition 47 was passed, there has been an increase in theft across the state. Cities like San Francisco have seen organized crime rings turn shoplifting into a well-organized racket involving desperate thieves and unscrupulous black-market resellers.
Among the nation's 20 largest cities, San Francisco now has the highest rate of property crime, which includes theft, shoplifting and vandalism.
Del Seymour, founder of the non-profit Code Tenderloin, told Fox News that fencers – often from Mexico and Guatemala – set up shop in the middle of the day and night around the city's United Nations Plaza area. He said he's also noticed that the stealers and dealers have gotten bolder by the day. The retail heists taking place, he said, aren't some small-time operation but instead a sophisticated network of international dealers who cross the border to buy stolen goods. What's worse is that a majority of the handoffs happen in view of San Francisco's City Hall.
The problem isn't just San Francisco-based. Across the state, retailers say they have been hit hard by shoplifters since Prop 47 went into effect. Across the bay, in Oakland, business owners say shoplifting is a problem. Spoiled Boutique owner Mika McCants told Fox News she worries about theft, especially at night. "I've had situations where I've had to call the authorities."
In San Diego County, 7-Eleven franchise owner Jassi Dhillon told NBC 7 that he has to deal with shoplifters at all six of his store locations. "It's happening every day, hour by hour," he said. Dhillon said shoplifting isn't a priority to law enforcement and said when cops do show up, the shoplifter has left the store or isn't concerned about the citation they are issued. "It's becoming a lifestyle for us now because we can't do anything much except take the loss," he said.
Rachel Michelin, president of the California Retailers Association, said shoplifting is not only hurting retailers but is also "becoming a public safety issue for consumers." She said black-market dealers frequently cross state lines because they know California will go easy on them if caught. "They know what they're doing. They will bring in calculators and get all the way up to the $950 limit," Michelin told Fox News, adding that "one person will go into a store, fill up their backpack, come out, dump it out and go right back in and do it all over again."
Michelin said she's seen footage from member retailers that she described as "completely insane."
And then, to make matters worse:
California is one of a handful of states that doesn't hand out plastic shopping bags. To get one, the purchaser has to pay an additional dime. Residents looking to save ten cents and spare the environment typically put merchandise in a purse, backpack or have it in their hand when they walk out, an unintended consequence of which is shoplifters can easily "fit in and walk out" with the paying crowd.
Hate to say it, but the sooner the "BigOne" hits and wipes out San Fran and LA, the better off this country will be.