The state, once known for its scenic beauty and economic prosperity, is currently facing various challenges. Homeless tent cities have become more prevalent, along with issues related to drug abuse, immigration, overpopulation, and an increase in incidents of shoplifting.
And speaking of shoplifting, there are proposals in California that some people argue could potentially make it easier for criminals to engage in theft within stores.
From PJ Media:
This is a total disaster!
If California isn’t already the nation’s shoplifting leader, it soon will be if State Senator Dave Cortese’s SB 553 becomes law, according to some retailers. The bill just passed the state Senate and now moves over to the Assembly.
Ostensibly aimed at curbing workplace violence — a nice way of saying “criminals who come in to steal stuff and create the conditions for violence” — California Retailers Association chief Rachel Michelin described the bill in harsh terms. “It says no employee can approach someone who is shoplifting. So even if someone is trained on how to deter someone from doing that, now they’re not allowed to approach someone. So, what does that mean?”
“We are opening up the door to allow people to walk into stores, steal and walk out,” she said.
Cortese, a Democrat, says that “We don’t want rank-and-file employees to be forced to place themselves in harm’s way,” something that Michelin says employers aren’t doing anyway.
What SB 553 looks like to me is more virtue signaling, enshrined into law, that California now turns a blind eye to shoplifting. That’s certainly the way criminals will read it.
How on earth will retailers avoid losing money with this law in effect?
Seriously, what company would even think about opening a brick-and-mortar store in California when the law practically allows shoplifting without consequences?
