Highlights
Smash and grab robberies can’t be stopped per a former chief of police.
He’s right. Here’s why.
Author
Opinion
Headline: California Flash Mob Robbers Won’t Be Stopped, Will Spread, Says Ex-Chief.
A former Philadelphia police commissioner predicted Friday that mass robbery crews would spread out across the country, given their success in a recent spate of California attacks on retailers. His prediction proved correct on Black Friday.
Charles Ramsey, the ex-Philadelphia commissioner, said there’s “no question” that the trend will occur elsewhere.
“This is something now that I really unfortunately think is going to spread,” Ramsey told CNN on Thursday. “Right now it’s in California, but it will spread, there’s no question about it,” Deadline.
Impact on Shopping-Employees-Violence
CNN suggests that the robberies will have an impact on retail shopping. Why would shoppers put themselves at risk?
Best Buy CEO Corie Barry, speaking to CNBC a few days before the Twin Cities stores were hit, said that she worries the trend could drive workers out of the industry altogether, BizJournals.
A security guard has died after he was shot while he protected a San Francisco Bay Area television news crew covering a smash-and-grab theft, part of a rash of organized retail crime in the region, CBS News.
And true to Chief Ramsey’s predictions, smash and grab robberies are now happening throughout the country, Fox News.
Why Can’t They be Stopped?
Throughout my justice career, I interviewed hundreds of criminal offenders for radio and television shows plus many additional interviews to understand the criminal mind. I once sat with hundreds of offenders charged with homicide and other violent crimes to gather insights for a crime summit.
First, criminals are not stupid. They understand what’s happening throughout the country as well as their own communities. They believe that these are property crimes and they know that law enforcement has restrictions as to what they will (or can) do.
Yes, I know that these are robberies (i.e., force or threat of force), but will they be prosecuted as robberies? Probably not. How can you prove that the person apprehended used force or threat of force when all have face coverings? The probable reality is that the justice system will probably treat these events as property crimes.
There are legislatures and prosecutors and advocates that have repeatedly told their communities that property crimes need to be downgraded or not prosecuted.
Offenders know that law enforcement is reducing proactivity; officers are not being aggressive as they once were. They get it that cops won’t (can’t) shoot property offenders. They know that officers won’t chase them because of restrictions on vehicle pursuits.
The intense media coverage of law enforcement and the use of force has led to an endless array of restrictions on cops. We’ve said that we want guardians, not warriors. Well, welcome to our new reality.
Criminals have always sought out easy and vulnerable targets which is why the disabled and a variety of groups have much higher victimization rates.
Thousands of cops are leaving the job per the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Stops are down. Arrests are plummeting. The incarcerated population is dropping. Jurisdictions are imposing no bail requirements.
We Are Telling Criminals That There Are Few Consequences
The message? Criminals see less enforcement and fewer consequences. Besides, they know that overburdened, overstretched cops can’t cope with scores of smash and grab robbers.
Think about the allotment of police officers on any given shift. Most are spread over a large area and are responding to calls for assistance.
Eighty offenders arriving in vehicles running into a store and stealing high-end goods takes about a minute-possibly two. By the time police are dispatched and arrive, they are already too late.
But even if they arrived in time to confront, what would they do? They can’t chase. They can’t shoot. Justice reformers want limits on property crimes leaving officers in a large number of jurisdictions with very limited options.
Conclusions
We are reaping the rewards of what society demanded in the wake of the endlessly negative media coverage of law enforcement. Yes, some of that coverage was deserved. The enforcement of laws must apply to all equally.
Regardless, we have record levels of violence and fear of crime plus a ton of cops leaving. Advocates demand that property crimes be downgraded.
As stated, criminal offenders are not stupid. They fully understand the world around them. They get it that the justice system can be powerless to stop them.
Violence is increasing in cities because we are changing the response to crime and telling offenders that accountability is reduced (or over) for a wide array of illegal acts. No, all of this doesn’t apply to all jurisdictions, just those with rising crime and violence.
Welcome to your new reality.
See More
See more articles on crime and justice at Crime in America.
Most Dangerous Cities/States/Countries at Most Dangerous Cities.
US Crime Rates at Nationwide Crime Rates.
National Offender Recidivism Rates at Offender Recidivism.
An Overview Of Data On Mental Health at Mental Health And Crime.
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