We’re blaming the wrong things for San Francisco retail theft -- please read

 

Chesa Boudin: We’re blaming the wrong things for San Francisco retail theft The criminal justice reform movement is facing strong headwinds in San Francisco. Please consider donating to our campaign to help keep our movement on the right track. Hi, it's Chesa Boudin.  Yesterday, I published an op-ed in SFGate addressing an important topic that’s been on the minds of many San Franciscans in recent months. Our city has been caught in the crossfire of attacks on criminal justice reform, thanks to several high-profile retail thefts of luxury stores around the Bay Area and across the country.   The all-too-common response in these circumstances is to call for more policing, a “crackdown” on crime, and attacks on progressive reform. I’m here to tell you that these knee-jerk reactions are not only short-sighted, they also won’t make us safer. You can read the full text of my op-ed on SFGate. But here’s the bottom line: We are at a tipping point in San Francisco; we’re in danger of making a decision driven by fear. We should not return to the days of locking up every person who commits any offense, no matter how small — a practice which not only failed to stop crime but also disproportionately impacted over-policed communities of color. Returning to those criminal justice policies offers no solution. We can have both safety and justice. I was elected in 2019 to keep San Francisco safe by focusing on prevention, supporting victims, and holding police accountable. The recall efforts are spending millions to reverse our movement, and I need your help. Please consider donating whatever amount is meaningful to you to help me fight back and keep San Francisco and our movement on the right track? It’s only through a multi-faceted approach to criminal justice reform that we can truly make our city the safe, thriving, and just city that it’s meant to be. I’m not done fighting, I hope you’ll keep fighting with me. I can’t thank you enough for your support, Chesa Boudin Chesa Boudin was elected District Attorney of San Francisco in 2019 to reform our criminal justice system. Now, right-wingers  want to reverse our progress and return our city to a time when innocent people were locked away and police acted with impunity.

20 Galli Drive
Ste A
Novato, CA 94949

 

Ad paid for by Friends of Chesa Boudin Opposing the Recall, FPPC #1437058, Financial Disclosures available at SFethics.org Committee major funding from: 1. Christian Larsen ($100,000) 2. Jessica McKellar ($50,000) 3. Laura Skelton ($50,000) Chesa Boudin: We’re blaming the wrong things for San Francisco retail theft An op-ed from San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin Chesa Boudin Dec. 21, 2021

San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin speaks to reporters before his swearing in ceremony in San Francisco, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2020. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)Jeff Chiu/Associated Press

Over the past month, following several high-profile retail thefts of luxury stores around the Bay Area and across the country — including in San Francisco’s Union Square — our city has been caught in the crossfire of attacks on criminal justice reform. The all-too-common response to these crimes has been calls for more policing and attacks on progressive reforms, but these knee-jerk reactions are short-sighted. Achieving long-lasting public safety means we must think about these crimes differently.  If we truly care about preventing these crimes — as well as others — we must implement the systemic changes needed to make a real difference.  

Although these crimes have understandably frightened store employees and have shocked those who watched the viral videos capturing the events, these types of thefts with multiple people running into a store and grabbing items are not new — reports of similar crimes go back years. They happened during the Trump administration, and they happened in cities like Los Angeles under the previous reign of an anti-reform prosecutor. Nor are they isolated to the Bay Area or even to progressive cities — retailers in Texas, Minnesota, Florida and beyond have all been targets.

Despite this, some are falsely blaming criminal justice reforms — and reformers — for these offenses. Some have wrongly accused progressive prosecutors like me of not pursuing accountability despite my office’s high prosecution rates on these kinds of crimes and our transparency on filing rates. And some have pointed to laws like Proposition 47 — which reduced some felony theft and drug possession charges to misdemeanors — as somehow responsible for these crimes. These are red herrings.  

Though Fox News might have you think otherwise, the truth is that as District Attorney of San Francisco, I am holding those who have been arrested in connection with the crimes in Union Square accountable. My office filed felony charges against every person San Francisco police have arrested for these crimes. We presented evidence at a preliminary hearing, where a judge agreed there was probable cause to proceed on all felony charges aside from looting — a reminder that aggressive charges do not necessarily translate to convictions. Accountability is important, and my office is vigorously pursuing it, just as we have in 86% of the commercial burglary cases police presented to us this year. For context, police have made arrests in just 8.8% of commercial burglary cases this year.

Organized retail theft is not a problem that can be addressed solely by law enforcement solutions — which come after a crime has been committed. Public safety is a shared responsibility between police, city officials, prosecutors and the courts — and also requires the help of retailers, community groups, public health providers and community members.  State and city officials make laws; police investigate and arrest; district attorneys file charges and prosecute; and the courts release or detain and sentence. Prosecutors don’t receive cases until after a crime has occurred and police have made an arrest. Combating crime can only come through a sense of shared responsibility.