51–60 of 142 posts
Does it work differently in the US, so are packages usually left at the doorstep?
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Why is this comment being downvoted?
Perhaps a direct quote from prop 47 would clarify how it makes theft not a crime.
So, still a crime, on par with jaywalking and littering (which, in Cali, is a minimim $100 fine + 8 hours community service).
And yet, we're talking about things that could be Christmas gifts, baby food, medicine, people's means of transportation, you name it.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Probably because it is work and the police don't care. In California with Prop 47, it might not even be a crime to steal packages.
" In California with Prop 47, it might not even be a crime to steal packages." Good thing California doesn't make laws and regulations related to packages and mail, the USPS does, so it is still a federal crime to steal packages.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Perhaps a direct quote from prop 47 would clarify how it makes theft not a crime.
Theft of goods valued under $950 was reclassified from a felony to a misdemeanor, regardless of what the item in question is (a case in 2017 was a car!). So, still a crime, on par with jaywalking and littering (which, in Cali, is a minimim $100 fine + 8 hours community service). And yet, we're talking about things that could be Christmas gifts, baby food, medicine, people's means of transportation, you name it.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Why is this comment being downvoted?
Perhaps a direct quote from prop 47 would clarify how it makes theft not a crime.
https://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2016/05/14/shoplifting-cal...
The summary seems to be that Prop 47 treats shoplifting under $950 of value as a misdemeanor. As a result, law enforcement is unlikely to pursue and punish, so thieves get away scot-free.
Additionally, organized crime has exploited this and can easily recruit people for their shoplifting rings. The article reports that retailers have seen a rise in shoplifting since the law took effect.
So presumably, package theft of anything below the value of $950 from a door step (not a federal USPS mailbox) would only be a misdemeanor in California.
My guess is most of these people are resorting to petty crime to feed a drug habit. Maybe amazon should put their tech and knowledge of supply chains to help bust large scale drug importers...
I wonder why stings/bait-items aren't used more often, when an area is facing a rash of specific kinds of crime, like bike theft, parked-car smash-and-grabs, and package theft. It's often a small number of violators – sometimes professional – who've been emboldened by early successes to scale up. So just a few stings, with adequate follow-through prosecution, could have a highly-leveraged effect on the overall rate.
It's the adequate follow-through prosecution that's the problem. Fines? Can't get blood from a stone. Jailtime? The cost-benefit analysis doesn't support that, prison time is expensive and petty theft doesn't really cause that much damage. I have no solution to offer here.
That's the rationale that makes car theft such a huge problem around here in the Seattle area, or did until the laws were tightened up a bit. Prosecutors and judges either didn't consider it worthwhile to punish offenders heavily or didn't have the legal tools to to do, so we ended up with people who had literally dozens of prior arrests being set free to steal more cars.
Not everything is supposed to be a profit center, and that includes law enforcement. I pay taxes to keep criminals away from my home and out of my life, and I expect to get what I pay for. Whether it's inconvenient or unprofitable to do so is not my concern.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Community service, pays back the community, hopefully break-even cost in terms of administration and enforcement to labor productivity gained, at least won't be as bad as a prison sentence. At best can be a form of rehabilitation.
And when you don't do your community service because there's no consequences (because jails are already full and because you can't squeeze water from a stone), what happens?
Serious question.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Perhaps a direct quote from prop 47 would clarify how it makes theft not a crime.
Theft of goods valued under $950 was reclassified from a felony to a misdemeanor, regardless of what the item in question is (a case in 2017 was a car!). So, still a crime, on par with jaywalking and littering (which, in Cali, is a minimim $100 fine + 8 hours community service). And yet, we're talking about things that could be Christmas gifts, baby food, medicine, people's means of transportation, you name it.
This is false. Jaywalking and littering (and most traffic offenses) are infractions, not misdemeanors. Misdemeanors are still serious crimes that can result in jailtime.
I wonder why stings/bait-items aren't used more often, when an area is facing a rash of specific kinds of crime, like bike theft, parked-car smash-and-grabs, and package theft. It's often a small number of violators – sometimes professional – who've been emboldened by early successes to scale up. So just a few stings, with adequate follow-through prosecution, could have a highly-leveraged effect on the overall rate.