Theft Soars After Felony Threshold Increase
Oklahoma lawmaker seeks legislation to address retail theft

A state lawmaker wants to revisit legislation passed in 2016 that changed the rules for filing felony charges against people accused of theft.

State Rep. Rande Worthen, a Republican from Lawton and former Comanche County prosecutor, said he's concerned that the change has resulted in an increase in crime. Thieves who in the past might have worried about facing a felony charge if the value of their items stolen exceeded $500 now won't necessarily worry until the value of stolen items exceeds $1,000, Worthen said.

The lawmaker hosted an interim study on the matter recently at the Capitol. Whereas in the past someone convicted of theft involving more than $500 might have faced felony prosecution, now the case would be considered petty larceny and would carry a fine of only $500 and a possible 30-day jail term.

During the interim study, District 5 District Attorney Kyle Cabelka told lawmakers that since the minimum amount of property that must be stolen to merit felony prosecution was raised in 2016, his district has seen a dramatic increase in petty larceny. He said many thieves apparently plan ahead before stealing to purposefully keep total costs of items below $1,000, so that if they're caught, they'll face lighter punishment.

"I believe because the punishment is so minimal, we continue to see it happen over and over and over again," he said.

Oklahoma City Police Department Detective Jason Miller agreed that the change in law in 2016 seemed to embolden thieves. The OKCPD's Organized Retail Crime Unit was created in 2017 in response to a "significant uptick" in retail crime, he said.

Miller noted that people sometimes travel from out of state to commit retail theft in Oklahoma because they consider risks to be worth it.

"When a punishment is so light that it's worth the risk of getting caught, it puts Oklahomans in danger and costs taxpayer dollars," Worthen said.  journalrecord.com

Big City Crime Exodus
More than 20% of homebuyers in New York, LA and San Francisco looking to uproot to different cities to escape violence and recession, study shows

In LA, where robberies are up nearly 14 percent, 6,720 homebuyers hope to move to San Diego and Las Vegas

More than 20 percent of homebuyers living in New York City, San Francisco and Los Angeles are looking to escape the Dem-led, crime-ridden cities. A new Redfin migration report shows that about 9,072 homebuyers in San Francisco are looking to move to either Sacramento, California, and Seattle.

In LA, about 6,720 homebuyer are looking for homes in San Diego and Las Vegas, and in New York City, 6,372 home shoppers hope to ditch the Big Apple for Miami.

The cities, which have all seen a spike in violent crime this year, are leading the latest exodus as Redfin reports nearly 24 percent of homebuyers in the US are looking to leave big cities amid the cost of living crisis.

The report also shows that Sacramento enjoyed the most new residents moving in during the third fiscal quarter, gaining about 8,700 new homeowners. Miami followed with a net inflow of 8,000 people, with Las Vegas coming in third with 7,000 new homeowners.

In Redfin's latest migration trend report, along with San Francisco, LA, and NYC, the other cities losing out on residents were Washington D.C., Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Denver, Seattle and Minneapolis.

The other cities gaining the most residents include San Diego, Tampa, Phoenix, Cape Coral, Florida; North Port, Florida; Dallas and Portland, Maine. dailymail.co.uk

10 Killed, 46 Injured in Halloween Weekend Mass Shootings
U.S. Cities Hit by Nine Mass Shootings Over Holiday Weekend
Halloween became particularly frightening for many people at festivities across the United States during the past weekend. There were nine mass shootings over the holiday weekend, including several in crowded places, The Washington Post reported.

Between Friday night and Monday night on Halloween weekend, at least 10 people were killed and 46 injured in mass shootings, the GVA found. This is similar to the number of casualties and shootings that took place over the holiday weekend in 2021.

In Chicago, at least 14 people, including three children, were injured in a drive-by shooting on Halloween, CBS News reported. A person was also hit by a car at the scene, police said. Two gunmen apparently fired at random into a crowd, and their motive is unknown.

In Kansas, City, Kansas, one person is in police custody and others are being sought after a shooting at a Halloween party on 31 October that left one 17-year-old dead and six other teenagers injured, Fox4 KC reported. The shooters wore masks or other Halloween costumes, which made the investigation more difficult, police said.

So far in 2022, there have been 577 mass shootings and 31 mass murders in the United States, according to the GVA. There were 611 mass shootings in all of 2020, and 417 in 2019.

A 2021 study found that mass shootings in the United States increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, and in Chicago, shooting incidents were up 64 percent comparing a period in 2021 against 2019.

"The large increase in mass shootings during the pandemic is consistent with the idea that this violence may be influenced by social and economic factors, the researchers wrote," according to CNN. Active assailant incidents are also increasing in the United States, doubling from 20 incidents to 40 between 2016 and 2020, the FBI found. asisonline.org

'Immediate' Policing Shift Under New San Francisco DA
Are S.F. police behaving differently under Brooke Jenkins than Chesa Boudin? Study finds immediate shift
San Francisco police officers stepped up street enforcement in significant ways after District Attorney Chesa Boudin was recalled and replaced by mayoral appointee Brooke Jenkins, a new analysis of city data finds.

In the three months since Jenkins was sworn in July 8, police initiated eight more traffic stops per day on average when compared with the three months before - an increase of nearly 30%.

Also in the 45 days after Jenkins was sworn in, officers made 10 additional "public order" stops per day, a 20% increase, according to the analysis.

The jump in stops raises questions about whether the change was driven by the replacement of a progressive, reformist prosecutor with a more moderate district attorney who has publicly pledged to increase punishment for people accused of crime.

The study did not show any significant uptick in police response to violent crimes such as assault or property-related offenses like burglary and shoplifting.

The analysis conducted in partnership with The Chronicle suggests that while San Francisco's switch in district attorneys hasn't significantly impacted actual crime rates in the city, it has influenced police behavior.

Jenkins, a former employee of Boudin's who supported his recall, has pledged to restore "law and order to San Francisco." While her charging rates for most offenses are so far comparable with Boudin's, she has said publicly she supports police efforts to crack down on lower-level offenses. sfchronicle.com

Are Crime Crackdowns Working?
It's been 10 months since a shooting has been reported at Lenox Mall

The shopping mall had almost 500 crimes committed in the area this year, but none of them were shootings.

As Atlanta works to flag "nuisance businesses" and bring crime down, police and city leaders are taking a strategic approach to target previously embattled areas. It seems to be working- at least, in the case of Lenox Square Mall.

Lenox Square Mall has not had any shootings to date this year, according to a spokesperson for the Atlanta Police Department. The APD Crime map shows the only incident this year involving a firearm was a robbery, which didn't lead to a shooting.

The shopping mall had almost 500 crimes committed in the area this year, but none of them were shootings, the crime map indicated.

Last year, Lenox had over 400 reported crimes in the area. The last known shooting in the shopping mall area happened back in August 2021 with an aggravated assault case. 11alive.com

Chicago PD Staffing Shortages
Staffing shortages in Chicago Police Department negatively affecting reform effort, court monitor reports
The Chicago police office that oversees the massive reform of the department is suffering from staffing shortages that could impede the court-ordered overhaul of the department.

“Reduced staffing in the Chicago Police Department, including its Office of Constitutional Policing and Reform, has slowed the City’s and CPD’s ability to engage with Chicago’s communities and demonstrate compliance with the Consent Decree,” the release said.

In her report, Hickey also noted that police departments across the country are suffering from staffing shortages.

“Staffing and resource issues, for example, have negatively affected the City’s and the CPD’s progress toward simultaneously and sufficiently providing training, supervision, and officer-wellness,” chicagotribune.com

Progressives Under Fire in Portland
'People are mad': Portland votes on government changes
Homelessness and gun violence are surging and parts of downtown are struggling, unable to recover from the coronavirus pandemic and the racial justice protests that gripped the city in 2020.

Now voters are deciding on a ballot measure that would completely overhaul City Hall. The proposal would scrap a century-old commission form of government that Portland is the last major U.S. city to use, and also implement a rare form of ranked choice voting.

Portland is known for its progressive politics. But many residents now think it's on the wrong track, thrusting matters of municipal bureaucracy into the political spotlight as outside funding pours in. yahoo.com

Organized retail theft is a growing problem in Arizona
Organized retail theft is a growing problem, both here in Arizona and across the country and around the world. A recent panel hosted by Arizona State University and the Arizona Chamber Foundation looked into the issue and ways to try to combat it.

Hochul crisscrossing NYC with crime-fighting message in final days of campaign

Two doctors say stop blaming mental health for mass shootings

The Explosion of Retail Biometrics - And Laws to Regulate It
Retailers are wading deeper into customer data. States are raising the alarm.

Brands from Walmart to Peloton are now able to access more personal customer data, including biometric identifiers, as they expand their digital capabilities.

When shoppers were stuck indoors due to COVID-19 restrictions, retailers started investing more in digital strategies to grow sales and entice new buyers. While this meant expanding order pickup technology or creating a more user-friendly e-commerce site, it also meant a push toward augmented and virtual reality.

From trying on glasses and makeup using smartphones to creating more tech-enabled fitness equipment, brands continue to invest in the space. This also means brands are finding new and varied ways of collecting and using consumer data - a fact shoppers are increasingly aware of.

Consumers want more transparency from companies about how personal data is used. They are also  concerned about how personal information is used in artificial intelligence settings. U.S. state governments aren't waiting for companies to make that information clearer either.

In 2022 so far, two new state laws have already been signed regarding data privacy, according to the International Association of Privacy Professionals' 2022 U.S. State Privacy Legislation Tracker, which was last updated on October 7. Three other state laws were signed between 2020 and 2021. Nine other state bills are active and nearly 50 are in inactive statuses across the country.

This indicates that state-level momentum for privacy bills is at an all-time high in the country, according to the IAPP. And tighter scrutiny comes just as companies like Walmart, Peloton and Snap are diving deeper into tech that has the potential to collect biometric identifiers.

Some existing laws, like the Biometric Information Privacy Act in Illinois, are already changing the way brands use technology. Walmart, Best Buy, Kohl's, Giorgio Armani, Louis Vuitton and Estee Lauder are all on the receiving end of lawsuits in Illinois under BIPA.  retaildive.com

Facial Recognition Across the Pond
UK Police Use of Facial Recognition Fails to Meet 'Legal And Ethical Standards'

Cambridge University researchers call for police to be banned from using facial recognition in public spaces over human rights concerns.

Police should be banned from using live facial recognition technology in all public spaces because they are breaking ethical standards and human rights laws, a study has concluded. LFR involves linking cameras to databases containing photos of people. Images from the cameras can then be checked against those photos to see if they match.

British police have experimented with the technology, believing it can help combat crime and terrorism. But in some cases, courts have found against the way police have used LFR, and how they have dealt with infringements of the privacy rights of people walking in the streets where the technology has been used. There are also concerns about racial bias.

The report, from the Minderoo Centre for Technology and Democracy, at the University of Cambridge, says LFR should be banned from use in streets, airports and any public spaces - the very areas where police believe it would be most valuable.

The report author Evani Radiya-Dixit said: "We find that all three of these deployments fail to meet the minimum ethical and legal standards based on our research on police use of facial recognition. theguardian.com

First Unionized Home Depot Store Coming?
Home Depot workers in Northeast Philly begin voting on whether to form retailer's first unionized store in U.S.

More than 270 workers at the Roosevelt Boulevard store are eligible to vote starting Wednesday. The results won't be tallied until polls close Saturday night.

Hundreds of workers began casting ballots on Wednesday to determine whether a Home Depot in Northeast Philadelphia will become the first fully unionized store for the nation's largest home improvement retailer.

According to filings with the National Labor Relations Board, workers may vote during three time slots in the store's training room on Wednesday and again on Saturday. A majority vote is required to form the union. Results will not be announced until ballots are counted on Saturday after the polls close at 10:30 p.m.

In September, more than 100 workers submitted signatures to the NLRB seeking representation for the store's 274 merchandising, specialty, and operations associates. Vincent Quiles, the employee leading the organizing effort, said concerns around compensation and broader working conditions drove many predominantly younger employees toward the cause. inquirer.com

DOL Updates OSHA's Severe Violator Enforcement Program
On September 15, 2022, the United States Department of Labor ("DOL") announced an update to the Occupational Health and Safety Administration's ("OSHA") Severe Violator Enforcement Program ("SVEP").

First introduced in June 2010, the SVEP focuses on employers that, in OSHA's view, "continue to expose workers to very serious dangers, even after being cited for them." The SVEP's goal is to "concentrate[] resources on inspecting employers who have demonstrated indifference to their OSH Act obligations by willful, repeated, or failure-to-abate violations." Under prior guidelines, an employer would be designated a "severe violator."  natlawreview.com

Apple's Unionized Maryland Store Files Complaint Over Benefits
Apple Inc.'s unionized retail store in Maryland is filing a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board after it was excluded from some benefits, opening up a new front in the labor movement's struggle with the world's most valuable company.

Hy-Vee to close all retail stores on Thanksgiving

Food Lion Expands Grocery Pickup to 27 More Stores


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