4 ms·
I lived in SF for 15 years. The worst area was near the tenderloin. The strangest day was street sweeping day. All the cars would be moved by 7am so you had a
by ransom1538 5y ago
I lived in SF for 15 years. The worst area was near the tenderloin. The strangest day was street sweeping day. All the cars would be moved by 7am so you had a clear view down bush street. You could look down bush street and see 3-4 piles of glass on the ground from the previous night. Without street sweeping you would see just a few people crying by their hole in the window.
Smash and grabs are truly the perfect crime in SF. The odds of finding a laptop in the trunk are quite high due to the techies. I, like most residents, cannot hear a car alarm anymore - at this point they help me sleep. It is impossible to get caught - even if you were - the odds of the DA prosecuting you are low. In someways I agree: what is the point of processing a person with a misdemeanor and letting them out in 2 hours without followup.
Ironically, without smash and grabs things would be much worse. I would fear criminals would start hitting apartments. My apartment neighbor was violently assaulted and had her apartment ransacked (for a LAPTOP!). Every office I worked in SF was robbed at least once - no one was ever caught despite clear video. Thankfully, the DA does care about home invasions [I had detective interviews]. So my unpopular opinion is: if they are going to let the city decay into a crime ridden dystopia - leave smash and grabs alone. Let them break into cars. Insurance will cover the window - you can buy a new macbook pro. The next step of home invasions is much more terrifying. AND! With each smash and grab the victim will start voting correctly.
- WalterBright 5y agoSeattle is also seeing a huge rise in catalytic converter thefts, which they can sell for $1000. Organized criminals are quick to slip under a car (SUV/trucks preferred because of more ground clearance) and saw off the converter with a battery powered saw. Just another reason why I'm reluctant to go downtown anymore. P.S. when I moved to Seattle 40 years ago, the police were aggressive in going after shoplifters, and things were very different downtown.
- sgt 5y agoImagine if they welded on a pipe to ensure the owner wouldn't notice until the next check-up.
- WalterBright 5y agoIf they can weld that good, they wouldn't need to steal the converters.
- xyst 5y agoThis is happening everywhere.
- sgt 5y agoSounds like the start of the demise of Gotham, to me.
- SignalNotSecure 5y agoSmash and grabs are UBI in disguise?
- bifrost 5y agoThat has actually been one of the things the DA and his supporters have inferred.
- bifrost 5y agoThe new DA absolutely does not care about home invasions. There was a fairly spectacular case last year when a home invader was shot by police (because he attacked the police with a deadly weapon) and the DA let him skate. Burglaries are also on the rise. The problem with your "voting correctly" assertion is that the people who're tired of things and have means just leave SF. This means the remainder of people are fine with it, or the newbies think the problem is something else.