Target Closing 9 Stores in cities because of Theft

You hit on the point here, many of these are “organized crime rings” - this isn’t petty shoplifting.

Shoplifting is of course going to be a misdemeanor under certain amounts. Not going to lock someone up for 10 years for stealing some shoes. Whether setting the “felony” amount at $500 or $1000 I don’t think changes it dramatically.

But when it’s an organized thing, whether a sophisticated operation or even a social media “flash mob”, that is different from an individual petty theft. You have to look at the total amount stolen and total damages caused to the store as one instance. Not much different from a bank robbery where they are dividing the loot. Apparently they got a few dozen from that recent Philly incident, so they should squeeze some of them with felony charges to determine the ringleaders or instigators. Charge them all as one. I think that’s the way this needs to be looked at, as organized crime and the instigators are deserving of felony type penalties.

To me this this is really just another shitty byproduct of social media. Those platforms better be cooperating with law enforcement and aiding in trying to infiltrate the theft rings that operate on their platforms, otherwise they are by definition facilitating crimes.

 

That's always been true, if we insist on ghettoizing the most impoverished and marginal, what do you expect will happen? Crime doesn't create those areas, crime is a product of deliberate choices in how we organize society, like putting all the poorest people in one place.

 

True, it may have no impact on you & I very rarely go to big box stores; target, Walmart. But for a low income neighborhood it could have real negative impacts for the vast majority that aren’t thieves. With store closures they could now live in a food desert and CVS/Walgreens closings could make it much more difficult to acquire meds. There are also lost jobs and a loss of property tax.

Target mentions safety as another concern which seems reasonable. a biz doesn’t want everyday citizens, children, seniors and young employees in the middle of a flash mob of criminals chaotically ransacking a store.


“But for a community that might depend on the retailer for necessities like groceries and school supplies, the loss could be substantial

It's unfortunate that it has to come to this," Bagchi said. "But I wonder, beyond additional security measures and national policy advocacy, did they engage anyone at the local level to develop more creative solutions and grassroots support to what might be a significant employer and grocery source in a potential food desert?"


Target to close 9 stores across four states because of theft and crime.

 

It’s a bit paradoxical.

Obviously, there have been efforts to intentionally “ghettoize” places, or to intentionally cut off certain communities (with decisions happening even after segregation), no doubt that’s disgusting.

But that isn’t always the case. Crime is also a deterrent for those acting in good faith to try and revitalize areas. I’m aware of one of these examples somewhat locally. Food desert near downtown. After years of trying to get a grocery store the city finally got one to come near downtown as a tenant. Within 2 years it closed due to repeated armed robberies. Who was at fault?

 

Shouldnt the move be to not have low income neighborhoods? Living in those places is already a negative impact for everyone that lives there, Target or not. All Target is doing is taking their money and keeping them poor.

 

Are you really this ignorant or just playing for much needed attention? Dude said we should shoot shoplifters “on site”… I can only suppose he meant “on sight” but you guys aren’t really that interested in accuracy when you’re spouting nonsense.

You see.. he’s scared…like you. He reads right wing nut job news and thinks people are dying in San Fran like it’s Ukraine when it’s safer than most places in Florida. He thinks it’s common to see bold shoplifters wiping out counters when it’s a remote occurrence. He probably thinks it’s no longer illegal to shoplift in California like most RW jobs who only read memes.

I, on the other hand, know how to read. Shoplifters should be handled appropriately for a misdemeanor or felony. You my friend can have a big ole “bless your heart” from me.

 

Those areas cant be revitalized through good-intentioned individuals or businesses, just as ghettos weren't made by a few bad-intentioned individuals. These things are all societal choices (many of them compounding over time), and hoping charities, volunteer organizations, increased police funding or incentivizing business will magically fix things where society has failed to act. These are the things that happen when we choose to let people live in poverty and misery, and fostering a culture where getting yours at the expense of someone else matters more than anything else. Some people do that as a CEO, some people do that by robbing the Target, just depends on your circumstances. This is America, this is who we are until we decide otherwise.

 

You too eh? The 70’s and 80’s were boiling over with rioting and looting on a grand scale. Now you see a store robbed on twitter and wet your pants about anarchy? Um, ok.

 

Its crazy because I know some people posting here actually lived through it

 

They literally did shoot college kids in Kent State. Ah, the good ole days!

 

See you are missing the point, they use the winnings from Lotto and the safe to BUY toothpaste and diapers.

 

I wasn’t talking about the low life criminals.
I was referring to the poster citygator. You and city express and apathy that is toxic and it places normal people and LE at greater risk.

 

Actually you can’t read or you’ve likely skipped pages.
I posted that 51 was a bit outside the lines on his comments.
Even still…He is closer to the truth than you are though.

 

I think the posters demanding more of the police would be the ones putting them at greater risk. I want cops to do less, not more, that is safer for them. They really arent doing shit to stop property crime as it stands, but that is normal for cops. As I have mentioned many times, the clearance rate on property crimes is less than 20%, the smaller the stakes, the less likely cops are going to devote time or resources and do anything. No one goes to any effort here. My guess is the stores don't even actually care about the stuff itself, just the cost or inability to insure those locations after a string of losses makes it unfeasible.

 

So ... Close Target to everyone that isnt a member? You've had some great ideas on this thread keep em coming!

 

What about the prosecutors? They need to do a better job getting these assholes off the street.
If we don’t hold the misdemeanors accountable, these people will strike again and soon they will commit felonies.
It’s the same thing at the border. No one is held accountable and so the stream of illegals continues.

 

Prosecutors can only prosecute people who are caught, and there's that whole thing about the vast majority of property crimes not being solved by the police. That's really the opposite of the border where they have detained and caught so many people it has overwhelmed the system.