CA's Response To Smash-And-Grab Retail Theft Getting Big Input From IE

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA — Following the arrests earlier this month of three men who were allegedly part of a smash-and-grab theft ring that operated statewide, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco released a politically charged statement Tuesday.

"Soft-on-crime policies and laws have allowed retail theft rings to emerge as a growing problem in California, which requires a close working relationship with local law enforcement agencies in different jurisdictions," Bianco said. "The Riverside County Sheriff’s Office will aggressively identify and arrest retail crime suspects and will remain engaged with DOJ to ensure these suspects are prosecuted to the full extent of the law.”

According to court documents, charges were brought against Los Angeles County residents Isaiah Abdullah, 26, Ishmael Baptist, 25, and Nickolas Mallory, 26, in the alleged smash-and-grab incidents.

In addition to organized retail theft, state prosecutors laid out a long list of charges for the men connected to specific thefts they're accused of committing both together and separately, including alleged heists in Palm Desert. Read more: High-End Smash-And-Grab Ring Busted, Had RivCo Ties: AG

Like Bianco, some Californians and a bipartisan group of Golden State lawmakers — many from the Inland Empire — say they've had enough. Two separate pieces of legislation aim to crack down on retail theft in California.

Bianco has long called for a repeal of the state's Prop. 47. Passed by California voters in 2014, the law made some non-violent property crimes misdemeanors as long as theft was under $950.

In early March 2022, Bianco addressed the state assembly's public safety committee, and later that day he spoke to reporters gathered outside the state Capitol about "the need to repeal Prop. 47."

Bianco blasted the predominantly Democratic state assembly and said Californians "must stand up" to repeal the law.

Californians may get a chance to do that.

A proposed ballot measure called the "Homelessness, Drug Addiction and Theft Reduction Act" would allow felony prosecution for repeat theft convictions.

The measure was conceived by the California District Attorney's Association. The current association president is Riverside County District Attorney Mike Hestrin.

"It returns teeth back into the criminal justice system. It returns consequences," Hestrin said last month.

Supporters are working the streets, trying to garner enough signatures to get the measure on the statewide November ballot. According to the California Secretary of State's office, as of Jan. 24 the measure had 25% of the required signatures. The deadline is April 23.

The deadline will come before a California State Auditor report is released this summer on the effects of Prop. 47 in Riverside and San Bernardino counties. The audit's scope will include, but is not limited to, crime data for the period before and after Prop. 47's passage. The audit will also assess recidivism rates before and after Prop. 47 took effect.

A bipartisan proposal from Inland Empire lawmakers is also floating around Sacramento. It's one of more than a dozen that aim to tackle retail theft. If Assembly Bill 1772 is approved by the state legislature and goes on to win voter approval, prosecutors could find it easier to seek sterner penalties against retail theft suspects.

Under the legislation, if a suspect is convicted of two or more misdemeanor theft-related offenses, jail time could range from six months to three years.

“Shoplifting, smash-and-grab thefts, and other acts of retail theft trends are causing retailers to close their businesses and endangering customers and employees. Since the pandemic, these crimes have increased. That is not the direction California needs to go," said Assemblymember James C. Ramos (D-San Bernardino), a lead author on AB 1772.

Several other Democrats and some Republicans, including Senators Richard Roth (R-Riverside) and Kelly Seyarto (R-Murrieta), are co-authors on AB 1772. The legislation currently sits in the public safety committee.