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> Later, the detectives would look up all the recovered loot on Amazon and tally up its total value, which exceeded the $950 minimum required for a charge of fe
by kccqzy 3y ago
> Later, the detectives would look up all the recovered loot on Amazon and tally up its total value, which exceeded the $950 minimum required for a charge of felony grand theft in California. (The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office declined to file a felony charge and referred the case to the city attorney’s office, which filed a misdemeanor instead.)
This is something I don't understand. I thought the $950 limit was the limit by which a felony charge had to be filed. But apparently, there's prosecutorial discretion in filing these felony charges even when above the limit? This felt like the biggest demotivators for cops and detectives: they could respond to 911 calls and take someone into custody, and then calculate the value of the stolen goods to make sure it reaches $950, and then just no felony charges afterwards?
- jrockway 3y agoIsn't that like tracking down Al Capone for bootlegging liquor, and then only charging him with tax evasion?
- deleted 3y ago[deleted]
- nness 3y agoWasn't Capone successfully jailed for tax evasion?
- wizerdrobe 3y agoWhich is kind of weird, because it’s used as a “crime doesn’t pay, the good guys win” and on one hand, sure, Al Capone is a bad guy. On the other hand it highlights the power of the government to harass someone they don’t like, suspect of crime, and can’t prove via unrelated arms of the government. That they’ll just lawfully harass you on all possible ways until they either bankrupt you or find something you’ve done.
- jrockway 3y agoYeah, but the post I'm replying to suggests that police are demoralized when the original charge is not what prosecutors actually bring in court. Ultimately, the prosecutor needs a charge that they can prosecute (get a plea bargain, or convince 12 peers of the defendant) and I think the cops understand that. In the case of Capone, it was just easier to prosecute tax evasion; "here's his bank balance, here's the tax we think is due, here's the tax he paid". In the case of shoplifting, plea-ing out a misdemeanor is probably easier than convincing a jury of a felony charge. Like, all they probably have is a grainy video of the suspect. Are you convinced beyond a reasonable doubt that that's the person sitting in the defendant's chair? If one juror thinks "no, I'm not sure", then everyone who commited the crime goes free. Also, realistically, $950 shouldn't be the threshold between a felony and a misdemeanor. That can't be a number that was adjusted for inflation. $950 isn't much money these days.
- annoyingnoob 3y agoThe Three Strikes law is one reason. How many people can we actually have in jail/prison for 25 plus years? If someone steals Amazon packages 3 times, should they get 25+ years?
- geraldwhen 3y agoYes
- pessimizer 3y agoAt $50K/yr, that's 1.25MM that society gets to pay to punish the theft of $950*3 worth of Amazon packages. The insignificant fear of losing an Amazon package makes unbelievably comfortable people absolutely hysterical. It's got to be performative, it can't be real.
- a2l3aQ 3y agoThat person is likely already a net drain on the system in many ways, I'd guess 50K is less than the cost of their actions + welfare over the year.
- bufio 3y agoI think people are more concerned about the brazen displays of antisocial behaviour.
- DiggyJohnson 3y agoDo you at least understand the opposite position, that not spending this money to deter antisocial behavior will result in it becoming widespread, and a greater net loss than this?
- carom 3y agoAt some point, yes. They are aren't playing by society's rules (committing three felonies) and should be removed. If you have two felonies, perhaps don't rob trains? Most three strike laws have to do with violent crime though.
- kevinqiu1 3y agoA felony charge is harder to prosecute. Maybe they didn't think they had enough evidence to win
- adrr 3y agoHow often does it end up court? And since he was part of a group that robbed a train, there is also conspiracy charges that were never filed.
- ijhuygft776 3y agoDoes the $950 follow inflation?
- callalex 3y agoDoes it really matter? The idea is that if you’re stealing because you are starving or need a pair of socks or something, it won’t be anywhere near $950. In other words nobody steals $950 on accident.
- Thorrez 3y agoCurrently. But in 50 years $950 might not be so large if it doesn't follow inflation.
- ijhuygft776 3y agoWith $950, you can't even get a roof over your head for 1 month... it can be a pretty big problem in winter times...
- nostromo 3y ago[flagged]