Organized crime...they have auto's too. Seriously, this past summer I was visiting a friend down near Fort Campbell, Kentucky (it's big...in counties in both Kentucky & Tennessee). He was retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel...my ex-roommate from OCS school. He was talking about another friend (sergeant major) who retired the prior year...working a part-time job as a manager not too far down in Tennessee. We headed down there and stopped by a Target...saw two employees chasing after two ladies sprinting into the parking lot with clothes hanging out of duffle bags...they then jumped into a Jeep driven by someone else. They were gone. I overheard one of the employees saying those ladies have done this many times...part of an organized crime group. Simply, what's next ?...shut down all the Targets in the rural & suburbs when organized crime moves from the urban areas to the rural & suburban areas ??? I've noticed some retail stores (like grocery stores) have become a little smarter about retail crime by having...entry only (no cashier near the entry and no guard) and another door for exit only (near the cashier and with 1 - 2 guards). This is something I saw in both Kentucky and Tennessee. If there was someone at the entry door. Typically a greeter (if that's a title) who doesn't act nor dress like a guard. In contrast, I didn't see the same in urban retail stores because they have limited space (smaller) as in one entrance that was also the exit. Rarely a guard near the door...easier to exit and quickly disappear into the urban crowd. Last of all, it's a problem at other retail stores too. Walmart, Costco, Sam's, etc. Stolen merchandise are quickly sold online (e.g. eBay). P.S. AI will become the future for retail stores. They will use facial recognition at entrances, scan purses & wallets upon entry to identify any returning thieves. Now imagine when different types of retail stores use (subscribe) to a national AI anti-theft system. wrbtrader
Call that karma. When extreme liberals make it legal to steal up to $900 and not be charged for it, what do these fools expect? They were all for it, until they ended up being eaten by the same criminals they bred. Also, wokeism is getting the push back that is a long time coming. Disney going down the tubes, Hollywood writers and actors on strike and about to be replaced by artificial intelligence. Full throttle, unlimited extreme liberalism about to be cut at the knees deservedly so.
I wonder if any of the millions of illegals coming in will/are participate in theft and looting? If it is illegal, as long as they stay withing their "per trip" bag limit, they don't need to worry about that working against them in the unlikely event that they ever show up for their immigration hearing. Or should that be "are there any who are not?" Ya. President Joe "Come On In the Water's Fine" Biden. Dems need to re-elect Biden because there are still pockets of the country that are not yet totally destroyed and they will want to finish the job.
How much can you steal in Tennessee without going to jail? Petty theft, which involves the theft of items valued at less than $1,000, is a misdemeanor offense. It can result in fines, community service, and up to one year in jail. Grand theft, which involves the theft of property valued at $1,000 or more, is a felony offense that carries steeper penalties. Simply, less than $1000 can be stolen in Tennessee for it to be considered Petty Theft. Kentucky A Class A misdemeanor charge for stealing merchandise valued at less than $500. It is punishable by a fine of up to $500 and one year or less of jail time. A Class D felony charge for merchandise worth over $500 and under $10,000. It is punishable by 1–5 years of jail time. South Dakota Petty theft in the first degree, if the value of the property stolen exceeds $400 dollars but does not exceed $1000 dollars. Petty theft in the first degree is a Class 1 misdemeanor, which can result in up to one year in jail and a fine of up to $2,000. Illinois Depending on the value of the stolen goods, you can be charged with a misdemeanor or a felony. If the value of the merchandise stolen is less than $300, you can be charged with a Class A misdemeanor, which is punishable by a fine (up to $2,500) and jail time (up to one year). This is a Democratic state and it seems to have tougher laws involving Petty Theft than the above Republican states I've legally resided in the past. Now lets look at Florida (below...never lived there as a legal resident but have had military training there). Florida In Florida, Petty Theft is the taking of property valued at under $750 with the intent to deprive the owner of a right or benefit in the property. Petit theft is generally a misdemeanor offense, with penalties that may include jail, probation, community service, and restitution. ---------- I became curious about the above states after someone seemed to believe "the amount" of petty theft is political and more associated with Democrats. Simply, theft is increasing in ALL states in America regardless of politics. The below chart shows the states (Republican and Democrat) passing laws to get tougher on retail organized crime...as you can see...of my associated states...only Illinois (a democratic state) has laws on the books to get tougher on retail organized crime. In contrast, AI (artificial intelligence) is already here and it is being used at all national airports and all secured military bases. In fact, it's already being used to scan driver's license IDs that are not shown but on a person's body...looking for those Homeland Security color stars known as "real ID" on a driver's license for traveling on domestic flights or when entering secured military bases. I believe that the star requirement (real ID) will go into full effect in 2025...nationwide. Anyways, I'm all for AI and RFID to make travel more seamless and also ultimately more secure. I obtained my "real ID" a few years earlier (last summer), I was required to show additional documents involving my military service because I needed it to enter certain military bases for minimum security access...plus they wanted to see more documentation about my military service due to the fact I asked for the veteran status on my real ID too. Anyways, AI scans what's on your body. Security Desks at entry will know what IDs you already have on your person and what obtained access you have prior to asking you for any type of ID... Nothing political about that...just advance security with all the fake ID's floating around out there. In fact, if I remember correctly, several of the insurrectionists were arrested for their involvement on January 6th, 2021 (attacking Democracy and trying to prevent certification of a U.S. Presidential election)... Some of the arrested insurrectionists had fake IDs including RFID blocking wallets to prevent RFID/AI scanning. That was a behavior by Republicans. Regardless, don't expect tough on crime to become tougher on criminals until 2025 when RFID and AI will be working together in full force regardless if you live in a Republican or Democrat state...thanks to Homeland Security. P.S. A lot of theft at stores on the southern border...merchandise is shipped back to countries south of the border. 35,000 trucks cross the U.S./Mexico border (from the U.S.) each day...that's an unreal number per day. Some of those trucks carrying loads into Mexico are carrying stolen merchandise from U.S. stores. P.S.S. Those two women I saw running out of Target with stolen merchandise in Tennessee...they were White and I'm clueless about their voter registration nor does it matter but only to a complete idiot. wrbtrader
After a quick research...professional shoplifters who work in teams are called Boosters. Target leaving Metro (urban) areas in some states will not stop the retail organized crime problem. It will just save them a lot of money because Target has very thin profit margins in urban communities in comparison to Target in rural/suburban communities. As noted in my earlier message post, these retail criminals will just get in an auto and drive to the nearby rural / suburban Target. wrbtrader
Well --- in our state... Most of the customers in rural / suburban communities carry concealed weapons. Every time one of these booster gangs tried to do mass shoplifting at a Walmart or Target in a rural/suburban area of our state the looting was quickly stopped by customers who held the criminals at gunpoint.
I wouldn't shoot someone running out of a store with a duffle bag full of clothes nor would I try to apprehend them because as you stated (maybe implied)... They could be carrying a concealed weapon too. Not worth my life over inexpensive clothing, cheap electronics, or food at a store that should have its own security at the door. In contrast, a shooting in a store, someone threatening a store employee with a weapon, or someone threatening me/family at a store is a different story. Seeing someone steal from a store...I've seen that too many times since I was 10 years old including seeing a bank robbery in college at a nearby bank to campus, an armed gas station robbery in another country, a police shootout with gang members on the street while visiting an Italian friend, a bus bombing in another country, I was threatened with an assault weapon by a midget when I was a teenager, carjacking with an assault weapon at an airport in another country, car bombing by a crazy woman in another country that caught her boyfriend (a fellow soldier) cheating on her... Two young ladies (maybe teenagers...they were young) running out of a Target would not merit my friend (a military officer) to pull out his weapon on them when they were running away... Shoot them in the back near other innocent couples that had young children with them while those two ladies were running away from the store employees chasing them...hoping for a head shot with those big duffle bags hanging down on their backs ??? How would that look when he's days away from his military retirement !!! By the way, my teenagers were with me too. We were traveling from another country (Quebec, Canada). My point, you need to have the ability to quickly assess the situation you're in to determine if it merits using a weapon. That was not one of those situations...our involvement not needed nor requested. Anyway, we bought lots of bags of potato chips from Target for the weekend barbeque/celebration for his retirement while on our way to visit another ex-military friend that was working as a manager at a nearby business. wrbtrader
Walmart might have a possible solution or at least a deterrent. https://fortune.com/2023/09/08/retail-theft-walmart-atlanta-police-station-shrinkage/