5 ms·

I can't help but wonder if this is one of the ways the police "get back" at our local DA (whom they obviously don't like). If the police simply refuse to respon

by tdeck 5y ago

I can't help but wonder if this is one of the ways the police "get back" at our local DA (whom they obviously don't like). If the police simply refuse to respond to crimes, they can then blame the increased crime rate on the DA.

dkasper 5y ago
It's not exactly getting back. If the DA isn't going to do anything why would you arrest someone?
jasonwatkinspdx 5y ago
I can't speak to SF, but this is exactly the dynamic that's been happening for years up here in Portland. The PPA tells officers to slow roll on crimes that create political pressure every time a candidate for mayor or council that will reform them appears viable. Sadly it's a very effective tactic.
- kayfox 5y ago
  The police have given up on property crimes in Seattle for the most part, and the shoplifting has in some cases gotten quite brazen and violent.
- refurb 5y ago
  Based on how weak Portland is on prosecutions, can you blame them? I mean, why arrest and book if they are out on the street that afternoon?
  - jasonwatkinspdx 5y ago
    That's not what's driving the dynamic here, particularly since the election of our current DA. He wants to hold the police accountable and they're at all out war vs him.
josephcsible 5y ago
It's not to "get back" at the DA or because the police don't like him. It's to best utilize their finite resources. There's no point in wasting time arresting people whom the DA is basically certain to immediately drop the charges against.
- tdeck 5y ago
  There's no point in "wasting time" stopping someone from walking out of a store with a suitcase full of stolen goods? Seems to me like that's a worthwhile service to provide whether or not you can rack up some vanity points with a conviction.
  - kayfox 5y ago
    Are you expecting police to be posted at the doors of all these stores?
    - tdeck 5y ago
      Of course not, my point is that there are things the police can do without a conviction, and they do those things in many circumstances. For example, police can famously seize property they believe was involved in a crime. If it were truly impossible to follow up on someone stealing in broad daylight, that would be the case whether they could secure a conviction or not. If there are officers nearby (as there often are near downtown Walgreens), you might think they would respond once in a while. Presumably they are not, or the staff wouldn't be under the impression that they "don't care".
    - pie420 5y ago
      Yes, because crime is so bad that almost every department, convenience, and grocery store has armed security patrolling outside and guarding the entrance. This isn't a thing in other cities. Even in the south side of Chicago. As a new transplant to SF it seems like shoplifting is actually encouraged here. If I was poor and broke, i would 100% be shoplifting every day. Could probably make a pretty easy 50k a year shoplifting tactically.
gfody 5y ago
I'm thinking the police aren't involved what-so-ever and this is more about the shop owners' senioritis now that their mission to deliver huge amounts of opioids into suburban areas[1] has been accomplished and it's time to go home. [1] https://www.realclearbooks.com/articles/2020/11/17/down_here_they_sometimes_call_it_boy_585675.html https://www.realclearbooks.com/articles/2020/11/17/down_here...
notsureaboutpg 5y ago
San Francisco famously will not prosecute thefts under some large amount of money in damages (I think it's like $1000). Why would police go through all the trouble to arrest someone who the state is going to let go of anyways?
hedora 5y ago
The article claims this is a direct result of Prop 47, which lowered penalties for shoplifting stuff worth less than $950. Organized crime groups just steal $949 per person from each store, and hit multiple stores in a day. The law makes it difficult for the police to prosecute them — a given person would need to be caught and prosecuted once for multiple crimes (that were probably committed in multiple districts, etc.). Even then, with all that effort, they get to bust someone for shoplifting. They could go after the leaders of the organized crime groups. I wonder why they haven’t.
- koolba 5y ago
  > They could go after the leaders of the organized crime groups. I wonder why they haven’t. The standard approach is to charge the lackeys and have them roll on their superiors. If the only threat to the lackeys is a slap on the wrist, they’re not going to rat out anybody.
  - diogenescynic 5y ago
    Considering consumer tech like Apple Airtags exist, it seems like it’d be easy to tag some frequently stolen goods and track them back to where they’re fenced and resold. They should punish the buyers of stolen goods since they obviously aren’t going after the thieves.
    - thatguy0900 5y ago
      It's these areas it's not politically possible to prosecute the thieves. How will it be politically possible to prosecute the people just buying groceries?
variable11 5y ago
The police know the DA won't prosecute, this jurisdiction is a typical revolving door of criminality, but of course that doesn't fit your narrative, you should somehow blame Trump and Russia instead.

by tdeck 5y ago

dkasper 5y ago

It's not exactly getting back. If the DA isn't going to do anything why would you arrest someone?

jasonwatkinspdx 5y ago

I can't speak to SF, but this is exactly the dynamic that's been happening for years up here in Portland. The PPA tells officers to slow roll on crimes that create political pressure every time a candidate for mayor or council that will reform them appears viable. Sadly it's a very effective tactic.

kayfox 5y ago
The police have given up on property crimes in Seattle for the most part, and the shoplifting has in some cases gotten quite brazen and violent.
refurb 5y ago
Based on how weak Portland is on prosecutions, can you blame them? I mean, why arrest and book if they are out on the street that afternoon?
- jasonwatkinspdx 5y ago
  That's not what's driving the dynamic here, particularly since the election of our current DA. He wants to hold the police accountable and they're at all out war vs him.

josephcsible 5y ago

It's not to "get back" at the DA or because the police don't like him. It's to best utilize their finite resources. There's no point in wasting time arresting people whom the DA is basically certain to immediately drop the charges against.

tdeck 5y ago
There's no point in "wasting time" stopping someone from walking out of a store with a suitcase full of stolen goods? Seems to me like that's a worthwhile service to provide whether or not you can rack up some vanity points with a conviction.
- kayfox 5y ago
  Are you expecting police to be posted at the doors of all these stores?
  - tdeck 5y ago
    Of course not, my point is that there are things the police can do without a conviction, and they do those things in many circumstances. For example, police can famously seize property they believe was involved in a crime. If it were truly impossible to follow up on someone stealing in broad daylight, that would be the case whether they could secure a conviction or not. If there are officers nearby (as there often are near downtown Walgreens), you might think they would respond once in a while. Presumably they are not, or the staff wouldn't be under the impression that they "don't care".
  - pie420 5y ago
    Yes, because crime is so bad that almost every department, convenience, and grocery store has armed security patrolling outside and guarding the entrance. This isn't a thing in other cities. Even in the south side of Chicago. As a new transplant to SF it seems like shoplifting is actually encouraged here. If I was poor and broke, i would 100% be shoplifting every day. Could probably make a pretty easy 50k a year shoplifting tactically.

gfody 5y ago

I'm thinking the police aren't involved what-so-ever and this is more about the shop owners' senioritis now that their mission to deliver huge amounts of opioids into suburban areas[1] has been accomplished and it's time to go home. [1] https://www.realclearbooks.com/articles/2020/11/17/down_here_they_sometimes_call_it_boy_585675.html https://www.realclearbooks.com/articles/2020/11/17/down_here...

notsureaboutpg 5y ago

San Francisco famously will not prosecute thefts under some large amount of money in damages (I think it's like $1000). Why would police go through all the trouble to arrest someone who the state is going to let go of anyways?

hedora 5y ago

The article claims this is a direct result of Prop 47, which lowered penalties for shoplifting stuff worth less than $950. Organized crime groups just steal $949 per person from each store, and hit multiple stores in a day. The law makes it difficult for the police to prosecute them — a given person would need to be caught and prosecuted once for multiple crimes (that were probably committed in multiple districts, etc.). Even then, with all that effort, they get to bust someone for shoplifting. They could go after the leaders of the organized crime groups. I wonder why they haven’t.

koolba 5y ago
> They could go after the leaders of the organized crime groups. I wonder why they haven’t. The standard approach is to charge the lackeys and have them roll on their superiors. If the only threat to the lackeys is a slap on the wrist, they’re not going to rat out anybody.
- diogenescynic 5y ago
  Considering consumer tech like Apple Airtags exist, it seems like it’d be easy to tag some frequently stolen goods and track them back to where they’re fenced and resold. They should punish the buyers of stolen goods since they obviously aren’t going after the thieves.
  - thatguy0900 5y ago
    It's these areas it's not politically possible to prosecute the thieves. How will it be politically possible to prosecute the people just buying groceries?

variable11 5y ago

The police know the DA won't prosecute, this jurisdiction is a typical revolving door of criminality, but of course that doesn't fit your narrative, you should somehow blame Trump and Russia instead.