Few political issues energize the public more than ones involving public safety for obvious reasons.
We all want to feel safe. Unfortunately, the correlation between specific policies and crime remains as inexplicable as ever. Lawmakers respond to perceptions more than data, so we end up seesawing between tough-on-crime policies and criminal-justice reforms based heavily on anecdotes.
The Legislative Analyst’s Office this month released a study that looks at a decade of state policy involving retail theft—and analyzes whether various laws contributed to the peaks and valleys of theft data. As it explained, reported retail theft increased by 11% between 2015 and 2023, although it blipped up and down. Rates are higher than a decade ago, although far below the peak in the 1980s.
It’s important to use 2015 as a baseline because in 2014 voters approved Proposition 47, which reduced punishments for low-level thefts from felonies to misdemeanors. As shoplifting and other retail crimes increased post-COVID, politicians and voters often blamed that initiative. In November, voters overwhelmingly approved Proposition 36, which rolled back Proposition 47 changes.
This Editorial Board shared concerns about crime and frustrations at aggressive panhandling and locked retail shelves. But we were fearful Prop. 36 would bring back the days of over-incarceration. The jury is still out.
The report is useful, but inconclusive. It noted that pandemic-related policies likely affected theft rates. Stay-at-home orders may have temporarily reduced retail crime, while COVID-driven early release programs might have increased it. Major police jurisdictions didn’t report crime data for seven months during those unusual times, thus making accurate crime tracking more challenging.
Per LAO, “various economic, technological and social changes outside of the criminal justice system could have also impacted trends in retail theft over the past decade.”
That doesn’t totally let Proposition 47 off the hook, but it reinforces the flaw in seeking easy answers and solutions to complicated problems. No doubt, Prop. 47 was a convenient scapegoat for critics of criminal justice reform.
We’d urge lawmakers to adopt LAO’s data-driven approach by focusing on post-Proposition-36 numbers—and tempering their ideological predispositions.
Public safety remains too important to address based on perception and emotion.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( LAO study on theft offers few answers )
Also on site :