Mar 5, 2023 04:49 AM
(This post was last modified: Mar 5, 2023 04:51 AM by C C.)
Is there really a shoplifting ‘epidemic?’
https://www.poynter.org/reporting-editin...-epidemic/
EXCERPTS: Legislators in California, Florida, Louisiana and North Carolina have answered the pleas of big retailers who want stiffer penalties for shoplifters, particularly those who work in groups to steal lots of stuff...
[...] The Retail Industry Leaders Association estimated the problem to be around $69 billion a year. ... The Retail Federation says a big reason for the rise in theft is that such crimes are not vigorously prosecuted.
[...] lawmakers in at least 11 states are considering legislation that would more harshly punish people caught stealing from stores with the intent to resell merchandise.
The panic over retail theft offers a real-time look at the making of American crime policy. In the absence of reliable data, and in response to perceptions of lawlessness, legislators have doubled down on punitive policies. Many have even created a new category of retail crime in response to the industry’s concerns. In some states, elected officials have capitalized on the shoplifting uproar in an attempt to roll back recently enacted criminal justice reforms.
Critics of the legislative response say that decades of research on crime deterrence makes clear that a harsher approach won’t have the desired effect and will exacerbate the system’s racial disparities.
“It’s like the ’90s all over again, except we have 30 years of evidence that all of that punitiveness doesn’t get us anything,” said Laura Bennett, director of the Center for Just Journalism, a non-profit dedicated to improving journalistic coverage of critical public safety issues. “But people are still knee-jerk responding with the same tired ideas that we know don’t work.” (MORE - missing details)
Walmart set to close all stores in Portland amid record-breaking retail theft
https://news.yahoo.com/walmart-set-close...23875.html
EXCERPTS: The closures, which will result in nearly 600 employees being laid off, come after a statement by Walmart CEO Doug McMillion in December 2022 noting that record-breaking retail theft had undercut the company’s economic performance of late.
“Theft is an issue. It’s higher than what it has historically been,” McMillon told CNBC. Prices “will be higher and/or stores will close,” the executive added if Oregon authorities failed to address rampant shoplifting.
Companies shuttering stores in Portland has become increasingly common [...] citing the cost of doing business in the wake of historic retail theft. “Small businesses (and large) cannot sustain doing business, in our city’s current state. We have no protection, or recourse, against the criminal behavior that goes unpunished,” a letter posted on the company’s store read. “Our city is in peril.”
In a similar vein, Nike and Cracker Barrel locations closed in 2022 with companies citing similar reasons... (MORE - missing details)
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All Walmart stores in Portland to permanently close
https://www.kktv.com/2023/03/03/all-walm...tly-close/
EXCERPT: . . . People who live near the stores that are closing say the closure is going to have a big impact on low-income shoppers.
“Safeway is the go-to-store if I have to, but that’s three times the price I would spend here,” Walmart shopper Amanda Pahl said. “What are we going to do? You’ve got to go further then you have to spend gas money. Might as well pay for it at Safeway at this point.”
According to a Walmart spokesperson, pharmacy staff will work with customers to transfer their prescriptions to other locations before the store closing date. All employees at the two locations will have the option to transfer to other, nearby locations.
There will still be more than a dozen Walmart stores in the Portland metro area, outside of Portland’s city limits... (MORE - missing details)
https://www.poynter.org/reporting-editin...-epidemic/
EXCERPTS: Legislators in California, Florida, Louisiana and North Carolina have answered the pleas of big retailers who want stiffer penalties for shoplifters, particularly those who work in groups to steal lots of stuff...
[...] The Retail Industry Leaders Association estimated the problem to be around $69 billion a year. ... The Retail Federation says a big reason for the rise in theft is that such crimes are not vigorously prosecuted.
"Most reported that in-store, ecommerce and omnichannel fraud are all on the rise. Other factors contributing to the increase in ORC activity include less prosecution of crimes wrongly perceived as 'victimless,' increased felony thresholds that let thieves steal more while facing only a misdemeanor charge if caught, and the growth of online marketplaces."
Is there proof that shoplifting is rising at an epidemic rate beyond the testimony of big retailers? There are certainly blatant examples of squads of thieves hitting stores, often with lots of witnesses and cameras watching them clear the shelves. But The Marshall Project searched for data to try to establish a trend and, as often is the case, the police data is missing, even though lots of legislation is based on the assumption that the anecdotal stories tell a bigger picture.[...] lawmakers in at least 11 states are considering legislation that would more harshly punish people caught stealing from stores with the intent to resell merchandise.
The panic over retail theft offers a real-time look at the making of American crime policy. In the absence of reliable data, and in response to perceptions of lawlessness, legislators have doubled down on punitive policies. Many have even created a new category of retail crime in response to the industry’s concerns. In some states, elected officials have capitalized on the shoplifting uproar in an attempt to roll back recently enacted criminal justice reforms.
Critics of the legislative response say that decades of research on crime deterrence makes clear that a harsher approach won’t have the desired effect and will exacerbate the system’s racial disparities.
“It’s like the ’90s all over again, except we have 30 years of evidence that all of that punitiveness doesn’t get us anything,” said Laura Bennett, director of the Center for Just Journalism, a non-profit dedicated to improving journalistic coverage of critical public safety issues. “But people are still knee-jerk responding with the same tired ideas that we know don’t work.” (MORE - missing details)
Walmart set to close all stores in Portland amid record-breaking retail theft
https://news.yahoo.com/walmart-set-close...23875.html
EXCERPTS: The closures, which will result in nearly 600 employees being laid off, come after a statement by Walmart CEO Doug McMillion in December 2022 noting that record-breaking retail theft had undercut the company’s economic performance of late.
“Theft is an issue. It’s higher than what it has historically been,” McMillon told CNBC. Prices “will be higher and/or stores will close,” the executive added if Oregon authorities failed to address rampant shoplifting.
Companies shuttering stores in Portland has become increasingly common [...] citing the cost of doing business in the wake of historic retail theft. “Small businesses (and large) cannot sustain doing business, in our city’s current state. We have no protection, or recourse, against the criminal behavior that goes unpunished,” a letter posted on the company’s store read. “Our city is in peril.”
In a similar vein, Nike and Cracker Barrel locations closed in 2022 with companies citing similar reasons... (MORE - missing details)
- - - - - - - -
All Walmart stores in Portland to permanently close
https://www.kktv.com/2023/03/03/all-walm...tly-close/
EXCERPT: . . . People who live near the stores that are closing say the closure is going to have a big impact on low-income shoppers.
“Safeway is the go-to-store if I have to, but that’s three times the price I would spend here,” Walmart shopper Amanda Pahl said. “What are we going to do? You’ve got to go further then you have to spend gas money. Might as well pay for it at Safeway at this point.”
According to a Walmart spokesperson, pharmacy staff will work with customers to transfer their prescriptions to other locations before the store closing date. All employees at the two locations will have the option to transfer to other, nearby locations.
There will still be more than a dozen Walmart stores in the Portland metro area, outside of Portland’s city limits... (MORE - missing details)