California voters get tough on crime and pass Prop. 36 to finally do something about retail theft

SACRAMENTO, CA - Voters in the state of California have overwhelmingly passed a ballot measure that will roll back some of the deep blue state's most "controversial soft-on-crime" policies that have been allowing criminals to commit crime after crime without being held accountable. 

According to Fox News, Proposition 36, the Homelessness, Drug Addiction and Theft Reduction Act, sought to undo portions of Proposition 47 by increasing penalties for certain crimes. Proposition 47 passed back in 2014 and downgraded most thefts from felonies to misdemeanors if the amount stolen was under $950, "unless the defendant had prior convictions of murder, rape, certain sex offenses, or certain gun crimes."

Data from a September survey by the Public Policy Institute of California said that an overwhelmingly 71 percent of Californians supported Proposition 36, despite a strong progressive rebuke of the proposition. However, over the last several years, many retail chains like Walgreens and Target, as well as mom-and-pop shops have been hit hard by theft, smash-and-grab robberies, and organized retail crime gangs.

When Proposition 47 was passed, it reclassified some felony drug offenses as misdemeanors. That measure was in part authored by progressive Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón who may very well lose his seat to Republican challenger Nathan Hochman. Gascón has faced a series of recall attempts throughout his tenure due to his soft-on-crime policies.

Prior to Election Day, Vice President Kamala Harris dodged a question about whether she voted in favor of Proposition 36. San Francisco Mayor London Breed threw her support behind Proposition 36, calling it a "meaningful difference for cities across California." Governor Gavin Newsom, on the other hand, remains staunchly opposed to the effort, saying it "takes us back to the 1980s, mass incarceration." 

San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan also joined the effort to partially repeal Proposition 47. The California District Attorneys Association, the Los Angeles Police Protective League, and the California State Sheriffs' Association all endorsed Proposition 36. According to ABC30, the law will reclassify some misdemeanor theft and drug crimes as felonies, creating a new category of crime called "treatment-mandated felony."

Those who are charged and convicted could go into treatment instead of prison. Fresno County District Attorney Lisa Smittcamp explained, "We will be able to, after the third time that they are caught with drugs after two convictions, file a felony and mandate them to drug treatment which will help them, their families, and the community tremendously." She said that Proposition 36 aims to better deter the crimes of smash-and-go robberies and other retail thefts that have been taking place.

She said, "For people who are straight thugs and stealing things because it's convenient and easy and acceptable, then those people are the people we are really going to concentrate on to say, 'No more. We gave you two passes, two slaps on the wrist and now you're going to get a felony.'"

Tulare County District Attorney Tim Ward said in a statement, "In Tulare County, the number of petty thieves who have three or more prior criminal offenses is up 371 percent from before the implementation of Proposition 47. In addition, 82 percent of petty theft offenders already have a previous and open pending case trailing in court. This new law should send a message to these kinds of criminals in our county that my office will use every tool given to us to hold them accountable."

Proposition 36 will also have stiffer penalties for those trafficking fentanyl, including increased prison time. Smittcamp said, "The threat of jail sometimes is what stops people from this behavior. The threat of jail is what sometimes catapults people into drug treatment." Proposition 36 will go into effect no later the December 18th and Smittcamp said that the full impact will take time to see. 

She said, "This isn't the answer to criminal behaviors and patterns in California, but this is the first step." Newsom tried to keep the measure from passing, saying, "Even before this initiative passed, my office and the Legislature significantly strengthened the penalties for retail theft. My biggest concern with Proposition 36 has been the regressive drug policy written into this initiative. With its passage, local officials in California now have the difficult task of sorting through a new mandate for drug treatment that actually reduces local funding for those programs.

I don't envy their work. We're examining the impact of Proposition 36 to see if the state needs to delay its planned closure of prisons in California. As the LAO has said, we'll need to make space for thousands of new inmates convicted of possessing drugs and it's going to cost taxpayers, likely at the expense of other programs."