Will throwing money at crime help or is it too late?

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Author’s note: This article is summarized from various sources and attributions are linked within.

Back in January of 2023, California rolled out new laws to make it easier for criminals to expunge their records and get a clean slate.

As Mosesi reported, “One of the biggest changes in the new laws is the expansion of eligibility criteria under California Senate Bill 731…including those with multiple convictions and those who have served time in state prison.” It also allows for automatic expungement of some crimes like low-level marijuana offenses.

Fast forward a few months and L.A. County Courts are scaling back considerably on cash bail requirements. This change takes place as of October 1^st per the L.A. Times. The state's no bail law was initially introduced in 2020 during the pandemic. “In order to lower the populations of prisons and jails, some police officials argued those policies led to increases in recidivism and crime. But a report to the Board of Supervisors last year showed re-arrest and failure to appear rates remained relatively static during the time the zero-bail policy was in place.”

In 2023, the state rolled out new rules for bail which are very low or $0 depending on the infraction. However, L.A. County lowered the bail to $0. “Virtually all defendants accused of misdemeanors or nonviolent felonies in L.A. County will either be cited and released or freed on certain terms and conditions after judicial review within 24 hours of arrest.” This includes those on parole who can be set free on pretrial, without bail, by a judge. “The few misdemeanor offenses that will still require cash bail for release include stalking, domestic battery and violation of a protective order, according to the new schedule.”

Add in the recent Senate Bill 553 that “bans retail staff from stopping thieves stealing from their stores.” With the relaxed rules on crime and lack of punishment, the high amount of smash and grabs and increase in retail theft in California is not a surprise.

This week, per L.A. Times, the state “awarded the largest-ever single investment to combat organized retail crime in California history — sending over $267 million to 55 cities and counties to increase arrests and prosecutions for organized retail crime.” This was voted on unanimously “by the Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) to 55 local law enforcement agencies across California. The funding, part of the Governor’s Real Public Safety Plan, will be dispersed on October 1, 2023, to 34 police departments, 7 sheriffs’ departments, one probation department, and 13 district attorney offices to prevent and investigate cases of organized retail theft and arrest and prosecute more suspects.”

Newsom’s fed up with the “brazen smash-and-grabs” and wants to ensure police departments have the staff and training needed to combat them. He assures citizens that the funding will also be used to “increase cooperation with businesses and the community, target criminals in blitz operations, as well as crack down on vehicle and catalytic converter theft.”

On the surface, this seems much-needed measure but it may not be successful if, once arrested, shoplifters will be released back into the streets without bail.

What are your thoughts?