Walgreens closed 22 stores in San Francisco where thefts under $950 are effectively decriminalized.

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Shoplifter’s Paradise

Please note San Francisco Has Become a Shoplifter’s Paradise

“Theft in Walgreens’ San Francisco stores is four times the average for stores elsewhere in the country, and the chain spends 35 times more on security guards in the city than elsewhere,” reported the San Francisco Chronicle (WBA). 

Earlier this year, a spokesman for CVS, which has closed at least two stores, told CNN that of its 155 locations in the Bay Area, the 12 in San Francisco account for 26% of all shoplifting incidents in the region (CVS).

Much of this lawlessness can be linked to Proposition 47, a California ballot initiative passed in 2014, under which theft of less than $950 in goods is treated as a nonviolent misdemeanor and rarely prosecuted.

Meanwhile, politically progressive local prosecutors from Los Angeles to Philadelphia and New York compete to see who can prosecute the fewest people.

Just Plain Crazy

This is just plain crazy. And it's another reason for the big backlash I expect in the 2022 midterm elections.