Category Archives: Victimless Crimes

CHICAGO (CBS) Customers were pushed and shoved this week as a group of thieves ransacked the Burberry store on the Magnificent Mile in the latest hit in a number of similar mass-thefts at high-end Chicago stores.

CBS 2s Tara Molina asked Tuesday how the crime is affecting the holiday shopping season.

That shopping season is now in full swing. The Magnificent Mile decked out and lit up for the season, and so are the citys other prime retail districts with garland, holly, and festive lights.

The concern is that the retailers on Michigan Avenue and elsewhere will not see the same crowds they have in years past because of these continued crimes.

You may have seen this recent video from the Oakbrook Center Mall.

Fourteen people stormed into the Louis Vuitton store and grabbed everything they could knocking over chairs and shoving mannequins askew in the process.

Days before, a crew hit another Louis Vuitton at the Northbrook Court Mall. They stole more than $100,000 in merchandise.

Those incidents happened in the suburbs rather than Chicago, but the videos do give a rare look at how such organized retail theft rings operate.

More recently within the city, four masked men ran through the front door of the Burberry store at 633 N. Michigan Ave. They grabbed handbags worth tens of thousands of dollars, and Chicago Police told us they also shoved a 23-year-old woman and hit a 66-year-old man standing at the door.

The man and woman are OK, but the thieves got away.

This in turn follows a posted warning from Chicago Police about a number of other nearby robberies, where organized groups are breaking glass to steal whatever they can get their hands on when the stores were closed.

One theft and one attempted theft also happened on the Magnificent Mile at stores in the 800 block of North Michigan Avenue. Police would not specify which stores were involved, but they did say in one incident at 4:29 a.m. Thanksgiving Monday, some thieves broke a window and took merchandise and sped off in a sport-utility vehicle. In another incident at 4:29 a.m. Sunday, some would-be thieves tried to break into a store on the same block, but drove off in a white sedan after they couldnt get in.

There was also a smash-and-grab theft at 4:35 a.m. Monday, Nov. 15, in the 1800 block of North Clybourn Avenue along the fashionable Clybourn Corridor. In that incident, the suspects succeeded in breaking a window and taking merchandise.

We dont want to be become the headlines, like San Francisco, said Rob Karr, president and chief executive officer of the Illinois Retail Merchants Association, but were pushing in that direction.

In San Francisco and nearby Bay Area communities, organized theft rings forced officials to change traffic patterns around high-end stores.

KPIX-TV, CBS 5 San Francisco reported a week ago Friday, the Louis Vuitton store and several other stores in Union Square in San Francisco were targeted for grab-and-run thefts. Days later, windows were boarded up and there was a pronounced increase in police presence and nervous shoppers.

Thieves also stormed into stores for grab-and-run thefts in nearby communities such as Walnut Creek, Pleasanton, Hayward, and San Jose.

Could something similar be seen in Chicago?

I think that concern us very present that its going to impact the shopping seasons, Karr said. It impedes encouraging people to come downtown. It impedes tourism growth, and it is not a victimless crime.

We asked the Magnificent Mile Association what theyre hearing from stores about these thefts and bolstering security. They had no comment.

But Karr told us when it comes to security, some downtown are having a hard time keeping their numbers up and theyre hearing about it.

Security firms are facing the same sort of hiring pressures that every sector of the economy is facing, he said.

Chicago Police tell us they dont have anyone in custody in these latest incidents, and they are still investigating them all.

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Retailers Worry That Repeated Organized Thefts Could Scare Shoppers Away From Mag Mile, Other Districts This Holiday Season - CBS Chicago

A man from St Helens has been jailed for theft and assault after stealing 100 of towels from a Matalan store.

Anthony Halliwell, of Phoenix Brow, was found guilty of stealing the towels from the store on Watts Clift Way on Thursday, November 11.

The 25-year-old man pushed a staff member out of the way as he ran out of the shop, causing her to fall and bang her head.

READ MORE:Car stolen and dumped as police release CCTV image of man

Halliwell managed to escape but was later later identified on CCTV footage by local community officers.

He received an 18-week prison sentence at Wirral Adult Remand Court on November 26.

Speaking after the case, community inspector Emma Haffenden said: "Business thefts are not victimless crimes, and in this case a member of the community who was simply trying to earn a living and providing an important service has found herself being assaulted at her place of work.

"I hope his arrest and this result in court shows how seriously Merseyside Police takes such offences.

"We have extra officers on the streets of St Helens to make the public and staff at retail businesses feel safe and reassured.

"We always step up patrols in the run up to Christmas, as part of Operation Shepherd, which historically we see a rise in crimes such as burglary, robbery, domestic violence and drink or drug driving.

"It's also normal to see an increased police presence in busy locations including shopping centres, Christmas markets and other popular attractions because, as recent events have shown, the threat from terrorism has not gone away.

"We want everyone to have an enjoyable Christmas and not be ruined by unacceptable behaviour from a small minority of individuals.

"If you have any information regarding theft or anti-social behaviour please contact or speak to our officers.

"Always call 999 if a crime is in progress. You can pass any information on anti-social behaviour via our social media desk @MerPolCC on Twitter or 'Merseyside Police Contact Centre' on Facebook.

"You can also contact the independent charity Crime stoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or via their online form at: https://crimestoppers-uk.org/give-information/give-information."

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Man pushed Matalan worker to floor as he stole 100 of towels - Liverpool Echo

At least 2,700 contract killings took place in 2019 and 2020 in more than 80 countries, enabling criminals to silence those who oppose them and dissuade efforts into investigating their activities, according to a Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime (GI-TOC) report.

At least 2,700 contract killings took place in 2019 and 2020 in more than 80 countries, enabling criminals to silence those who oppose them and dissuade efforts into investigating their activities. (Photo: Tumisu, Pixabay, License)The negative impacts are severe. Assassinations weaken society and the economy, they undermine democratic processes, and they create great fear in many societies, said GI-TOC Director Mark Shaw.

There are a variety of motives for why one might seek out the services of an assassin, but the four overarching ones are: political, economic, organized crime, and personal.

While contract killings occur across all corners of the globe, GI-TOC has discovered that they cluster around geographic hotspots for organized crime activity.

In the Americas, for instance, which accounted for 37% of recorded contract killings, 74% of all cases therein took place in Colombia and Mexico, where the transnational drug trade has historically run strong.

As for the victims, GI-TOCs report highlights how the local community is far more prone to being targeted than other demographics such as the private sector.

Global activists and community leaders make up the bulk of victims because, in most cases, the point of a contract killing is to send the people a message that no one is safe if they interfere in criminal activities.

When these threats are made to a community member, they are clearly intended to intimidate and impose a culture of widespread fear within that community, said Senior GI-TOC Analyst Nina Kaysser.

For example, in the Americas, land and natural resources are of great value to drug trafficking organizations, who also engage in illegal logging, land theft, and deforestation.

Therefore, any efforts against illegal logging, or in support of protected areas, are met with deadly consequences to local community members and indigenous peoples.

Some organized crime groups show extreme and public displays of violence such as beheadings and the dismembering of bodies. Messages left on bodies, including the claiming of responsibility, along with evidence of extreme violence, carry a high degree of symbolism, according to Kaysser.

Enough fear generated by assassinations can even undermine a societys democracy; voters will begin to vote corrupt officials who will not oppose organized crime groups, or simply not vote at all, thereby perpetuating the cycle of violence and impunity.

Those who seek to expose criminal activity naturally find themselves in the crosshairs of contract killings as well. Journalists, for instance, accounted for just under 10% of all victims in 2019 and 2020, according to GI-TOC.

Andrew Caruana Galizia is a Co-Founder of the Daphne Caruana Galizia Foundation, an organization whose mission is to ensure that journalists can carry out their investigations into assassinations and support them from any external forces seeking to derail their efforts.

His mother, Daphne Caruana Galizia, was investigating how organized crime was turning Malta into a Mafia-state and was assassinated for it in 2017. The foundation is named in her honor.

Andrew attributes his mothers assassination to the Mafias rising influence in Maltese affairs, arguing that journalists only become targets when state agencies have already failed.

The foundation also highlights how important it is for a democracy that journalists be able to investigate organized crime and corruption unhindered.

When a prominent journalist is assassinated, it destroys the pipeline of future leaders in journalism, in politics, and that leaves society or a democracy permanently handicapped, Andrew said.

Another notable contract killing victim was Derk Wiersum, a well known Dutch criminal lawyer, who in 2019 represented a state witness against a group accused of several murders.

Two of the accused, Ridouan Taghi and Said Razzouki, are believed to be part of a drug trafficking organization responsible for one-third of Europes cocaine trade and were amongst Europols most wanted fugitives until their arrest in 2019.

One early September morning, Wiersum was gunned down by an unknown assailant; his assassination was widely interpreted as a message to any who might work to oppose the transnational organized drug trade.

Contract killings are closely linked to the prevalence of organized crime and the strength of criminal groups, Kaysser says. They show ways in which organized crime is embedded in political and economic institutions.

The Daphne Caruana Galizia and Derk Wiersums cases show how contract killings occur everywhere, even in places considered safe, where democracies are consolidated and stable, and the rule of law is really strong, according to GI-TOC Analyst Ana Paula Oliveira.

In response to such cases, Andrew Caruana Galizia suggests that police investigate the root cause behind the assassination, not just the killing itself, especially in instances where a journalist was murdered for investigating criminal activity.

He further argues that investigating the corruption that might have motivated the murder can do more to reduce levels of violence than simply arresting the perpetrator.

Increased police attention to perceived victimless crimes such as corruption and money laundering, which are vital to transnational organized crime, can have a significant impact on their businesses and help reduce violent crime levels, he notes.

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GI-TOC Uncovers the Scope of Contract Killings Linked to Organized Crime - OCCRP

Uninsured drivers be in for a shock as Northamptonshire Police get behind a national campaign aimed at adding to 100,000 vehicles already seized across the UK this year.

The Safer Roads and Road Crime Teams are leading a week-long initiative starting on Monday (November 15) as part of the Forces commitment to reducing numbers of people killed or seriously injured on the county's roads.

Operation Drive Insured will see an increase in policing activity in a bid to detect and seize uninsured vehicles.

Developed by the Motor Insurers Bureau in partnership with the National Roads Policing Operations, Intelligence and Investigations committee, the week has become an annual date in the road safety calendar.

Figures from MIB show that so far this year more than 26,000 people were injured by uninsured or hit-and-run drivers in the UK.

Inspector Tony Kennedy, of the county Central Operations Team, said: Reducing the number of people killed or seriously injured on our roads remains our priority and removing uninsured drivers from our roads helps to do just that.

Using Automated Number Plate Recognition, we will be carrying out a combination of mobile and static road checks, throughout Operation Drive Insured.

Many people will see uninsured driving as a victimless crime at best, or as only impacting on the profits of large insurance companies at worst but this is not the case.

However, we witness far too often, the devastation a road collision has on those involved, their families and the wider communities but when this also involves an uninsured driver, there is also the financial costs associated with it.

Evidence from MIB shows drivers without insurance are more likely to commit a hit and run and be involved in other crimes be it using a stolen vehicle, driving while disqualified or without a valid driving licence. Some are also caught driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

One of the reasons for this is that unlike insured drivers, those who are uninsured arent motivated to display safer behaviour and meet the basic legal requirements designed to keep policy costs down.

MIB requires 400million each year to provide financial support to those who are involved in road collisions with uninsured and hit-and-run drivers, which is funded by insurers and ultimately consumers.

Drivers without insurance face their vehicle being seized and potentially crushed, along with a 300 fixed penalty notice and six licence points. They can also be referred to court and face an unlimited fine and a driving ban.

Uninsured convictions also show on basic Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks which can impact employment prospects.

Anyone can check that their vehicle appears as insured on the MID database for free.

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"Driving with no insurance is not a victimless crime," say police ahead of crackdown - Northampton Chronicle and Echo

THESE are just some of the sickening sex offenders to face justice recently in the North East.

Rapists, child abusers and perverts have all appeared before Crown Courtfor their abhorrent behaviour.

The child rapist carried out a campaign of horrendous abuse on a young girl has been locked up for 20 years.

James Vayro systematically abused the girl over a protracted period until his reign of terror was finally brought to an end when she bravely spoke out.

The 33-year-old bullied and threatened the youngster into performing a number of sickening sex attacks to satisfy his depraved urges.

James Vayro

Vayro, of Orchard Way, Gainford, Darlington, was found guilty of a number of rapes and sexually assault following a trial.

Judge Timothy Stead sentenced Vayro to 20 years in custody 19 years in prison with an additional year on extended licence for the abuse he carried out on the 'brave and dignified' victim over a number of years.

A MATHS teacher has been jailed for eight months after admitting sexually touching a teenage girl.

Aimee Jones struck up the illicit relationship through text messages with the girl before they started to meet up in local parks where they 'held hands and kissed'.

Teesside Crown Court heard how on one occasion the teacher and the teenager ended up topless in her car and hidden only by a blanket.

The 35-year-old admitted four counts of abusing a position of trust by engaging in sexual activity with a girl aged between 13 and 17 being cared for in school premises between January 2020 and March 2021.

The illegal relationship continued until Jones, who has a young son, admitted to her husband that she was having an affair.

However, she at first claimed it was with a female teaching assistant at the Darlington school.

Jones, of West Road, Richmond, was jailed for eight months for all offences.

Judge Chris Smith said he accepted the defendant's genuine remorse but told her that an immediate custodial sentence was inevitable.

"They were not overtly sexual messages but they make it plain that you were interested in her, that you found her attractive and that was profoundly inappropriate," he said. "You met her on a number of occasions and your conduct towards her became increasingly sexual."

THE man in charge of Castle Howard for 30 years until 2015 sexually abused a child, a York jury decided.

Allegations that Simon Howard attempted to rape a woman in a separate incident have been left on file.

He will be on the sex offenders register for five years.

The 65-year-old, who now lives in Norton, did not attend any hearing of the case at York Crown Court because psychiatrists declared him mentally unfit to stand trial.

He had suffered irreparable brain damage from a fall at his home in early 2020.

He was not convicted of any crime because his case was dealt with under legislation for defendants who are mentally ill or insane.

His trial was held last month but reporting restrictions meant that it could not be reported until now.

The jury heard the child, now a woman, describe how Howard indecently assaulted her and incited her to commit an act of gross indecency when she was under 10 years old.

They heard she ran straight to tell her mother after the incident and her parent confronted Howard.

Simon Howard, pictured in the chapel at Castle Howard

Following his arrest, Howard told police he remembered being challenged by the mother but denied describing any sexual activity.

He repeatedly denied that he had done anything inappropriate.

The abuse happened shortly after Howard took over running of the stately home.

He was still in charge of Castle Howard when he allegedly attempted to rape a woman.

A MAN who sexually exploited a vulnerable teenager, treating her, as a sex object, is starting a 22-year prison sentence.

Ernest Short carried out the bullying, repellent attacks on the girl, including one when she was unwell, then told her he would commit suicide or commit other forms of self-harm if she were to report them.

Durham Crown Court heard the victim, who only felt strong enough to report the abuse in recent years, has suffered deep psychological trauma as a result, and has resorted to self-harm herself.

The 57-year-old defendant, of The Old Customs House, Borough Road, North Shields, denied the offences, all said to have taken place in County Durham, at a plea hearing at the court, in February.

Ernest Short

He underwent a trial, which was delayed by two hospital visits on his part, in late September and was convicted by the jury on 13 counts, eight of rape and five of indecent assault, on October 4.

Imposing the 22-year sentence, Judge James Adkin told Short he would have to serve two-thirds of the jail term, more than 14 years, behind bars before being released on parole.

He said Short was guilty of bullying, repellent behaviour, describing his crimes as, a litany of exploitative sexual offending, adding: You essentially treated her as a sexual object to use at your whim.

A PERVERT who downloaded and shared sickening child abuse images has been given a suspended prison sentence.

Nathan Lazenby was caught in possession of almost 100 depraved pictures and images when police turned up at the door of his Darlington home.

The 25-year-old had been accessing the vile child abuse images between January 1 year and March 3 this year, Teesside Crown Court heard.

Lazenby pleaded guilty to three charges of making indecent images of children and three charges of distribution of indecent images of children.

David Robinson-Young, in mitigation, said his client was ashamed of his behaviour and urged the judge to suspend any custodial sentence.

Judge Paul Watson QC, the Recorder of Middlesbrough, sentenced Lazenby to two years in custody, suspended for two years.

He said: "You don't need me to tell you the general feeling of revulsion in society with people who distribute material of this sort. The possession and distribution of images like this is not a victimless crime, these are invariably real children who have been subjected to real and sometimes unimaginable abuse."

A COMPUTER worker has been jailed for thwarting the efforts of specialist police efforts to access a hard drive suspected of containing images of child sexual abuse.

Christopher Longley was arrested by officers from the North East Regional Special Operations Units (NERSOU) Cyber Crime Department, in March 2015.

The now 57-year-old was suspected of carrying out offences under the Computer Misuse Act, which led to the seizure of a number of devices.

When he was interviewed, Longley denied the allegation, claiming the hard drive had been accidentally encrypted and the key to decrypt it no longer worked.

Christopher Longley

A court order was later granted under the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (RIPA) to compel him to provide the correct key to decrypt the hard drive and encrypted file, but he failed to comply.

Longley, of Briar Lea, Shiney Row, denied failing to provide the key to protected information and doing an act/acts intended or tending to pervert the course of justice.

Following a four-day trial at Newcastle Crown Court he was found guilty, on October 1.

On his return to court for sentencing he received a 15-month prison sentence.

Judge Penny Moreland also made him subject to a Sexual Harm Prevention Order for 15 years.

The judge said he had done, whatever he could to frustrate the investigation.

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Some of the people in court for sickening sex offences in the North East - The Northern Echo

The conference on Fundamental Rights and Rule of Law held by the European Economic and Social Committee brought into light serious violations and negative trends in the four areas covered by the European Rule of Law Mechanism (justice, corruption, media, checks and balances). The EESC stressed that civil society is a dynamic actor in defending this fundamental principle of the EU.

The conference entitled Civil society perspectives on the European Rule of Law Mechanism organised by the EESC's Fundamental Rights and Rule of Law (FRRL) Group, was held on 4 November. It offered space for dialogue amongst stakeholders which contributed to the FRRL Group country visits carried out in 2020-2021 and to the first two Rule of Law Reports published by the European Commission.

The president of the EESC's FRRL Group Cristian Prvulescu, underlined the role of civil society: We do not turn to the representatives of civil society for the 'sake of the principle', we listen to civil society because its contribution is essential to these crucial issues.

The EESC has played its part by adopting a number of opinions, hearings and country visit reportsin the last two years, in its effort to contribute to a "joint culture of the rule of law" called for by the Commission.

Along the same lines, Giulia Barbucci, EESC's Vice-President, affirmed that reversing current negative trends in in the protection of the rule of law passed through civil society: EU legal and political responses cannot stand alone. We must also better engage civil society actors as they are the bridge between the expectations of the general population and institutions.

Nevertheless, there is still a lot to be done and a long way to go as Matthew Caruana Galizia, from the Daphne Caruana Galizia Foundation, said. His mother, Daphne Caruana Galizia, a Maltese journalist, was murdered while investigating corruption, money laundering and organised crime. My mother is unfortunately a good example of how failings in the rule of law and widespread corruption are not victimless crimes, the murder shutters that perception into thousand pieces.

After more detailed discussions of the four pillars of the European Rule of Law Mechanisms in parallel sessions, participants reconvened to discuss the lessons learned and future perspectives. There was agreement that the rule of law was vital for the functioning of the EU as a whole, including for its credibility, resilience and mutual trust.

As Debbie Kohner, from the European Network of National Human Rights Institutions (ENNHRI), summed up, all four pillars covered by the European Rule of Law Mechanism - justice system, media freedom and pluralism, anti-corruption frameworks, and other checks and balances - are intertwined. National Human Rights Institutions monitor trends and show how an erosion of standards in one area creates a deterioration in the other.

Calling for a strong action as he concluded the event, Cristian Prvulescu, said: The attack on the rule of law and fundamental rights was initially an attack on human rights and then became an attack on NGOs. Finally, it became an attack on institutions of the rule of law and on democracy itself.

The EESC's FRRL Group will continue to advocate for fundamental rights and rule of law by taking action in cooperation with civil societies in all Member States, notably through country visits and their subsequent country visit reports.

The FRRL Group was created in 2018 as a horizontal body within the European Economic and Social Committee, to enhance the contribution of organised civil society to strengthening fundamental rights, democracy and the rule of law and responding to the shrinking civic space for civil society organisations.

The conference is the second organised by the FRRL group and follows on from a similar event held in 2019 at which participants discussed Trends in the EU from a civil society perspective. The results of the discussions fed into the first synthesis reportissued by the FRRL Group in June 2020, which highlighted trends in the EU based on the first seven country visits led by the Group.

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Reversing the negative trends in the rule of law across the EU passes through civil society - Marketscreener.com

Sport

2 Nov, 2021 07:27 AM4 minutes to read

Verry Elleegant ridden by James McDonald wins the 2021 Lexus Melbourne Cup at Flemington Racecourse. Video / Trackside

In his darkest hour superstar New Zealand jockey James McDonald made a promise to himself.

Yesterday, at Flemington, his equine sweetheart Verry Elleegant helped him keep that pledge in a dazzling Kiwi domination of the A$8 million Melbourne Cup.

The former South Auckland-trained mare swept past hot favourite Incentivise at the Flemington 200m for a breathtakingly easy victory to put a A$4.4m exclamation mark on her remarkable career.

Trained by ex-pat Kiwi Chris Waller, Verry Elleegant had plenty doubting her champion status after two recent defeats but now the winner of Australia's iconic staying double, the Caulfield and Melbourne Cups as well as almost A$14.3m nobody is doubting her any more.

But horses don't care what people say, they can't read.

McDonald can and his Christmas present in 2016 was more doubters, more criticism, that any then 24-year-old should have to endure.

The wonder kid of Australian racing was disqualified for 18 months for profiting from a $1000 bet somebody else placed on Astern, a horse he rode to win.

It is the most victimless of crimes, not even disallowed in some forms of racing, but it came with a mandatory 18-month ban. McDonald's career was shattered and plenty of pundits piled in.

The critics said he would get too fat, as he already has some struggles with weight. He was never welcomed back by global super power Godolphin, his then bosses, and some thought he had become a cautionary tale.

McDonald didn't doubt.

2 Nov, 2021 06:59 AMQuick Read

2 Nov, 2021 06:59 AMQuick Read

2 Nov, 2021 05:42 PMQuick Read

In that darkest hour as he drove away from the hearing that could have destroyed a young man's life he rang those he trusted. Those who had had their backs to the wall, his own collection of fallen angels.

They told him what McDonald knew but any young man staring into a career abyss wants to hear: You will be okay. Come back better. Come back and win the Melbourne Cup.

The last one stuck. A goal, a tangible thing, a prize to be chased that one day McDonald could claim. A giant, gold redemption token with the racing world watching.

So on that December day McDonald promised himself to win the Melbourne Cup. Of course all jockeys want to, and some even dream of winning THE race.

But McDonald, the happy little Waikato magician, promised himself.

He swallowed his medicine and remarkably didn't become sour or blame others. He spent his time wisely, losing his riding gear, discovering the world.

He became a more well-rounded young man, living proof that maybe everybody in horse racing should be forced from its fishbowl in their 20s to gain perspective.

Since has returned to race riding in May 2018, he has gone to the next level, his own level.

More focused, more business but still laughing, his weight more under control. As for Godolphin, these days they are lucky to get him because everybody wants the comeback kid.

J-mac has gone from being one of the best jockeys in Australia to the best jockey in Australia. Some title.

Three weeks ago he won the A$15m Everest, the flashiest and richest race in his home town of Sydney and on his track. It doesn't get any bigger, does it?It does if you made yourself a promise on your darkest day. Keeping that promise closes the circle.

Ironically J-mac wasn't even set to ride Verry Elleegant until last Saturday because while he is her regular New South Wales rider another hoop was committed to her for the spring because McDonald thought he would be trapped in NSW by Covid.

But plans changed, state borders came down, racing plans changed and as fate would have it McDonald, who obliterated the record books with four winners on Derby Day, found out that day he and Verry Elleegant would be a couple again in the Melbourne Cup.After that barrier 18 didn't matter. The firm track didn't matter.

That promise had to be kept and when it was McDonald screamed into his hand in a private moment watched by millions. Job done.

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From 'shattered career' to top of the world: How superstar Kiwi jockey bounced back - New Zealand Herald

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) San Francisco is looking to put an end to organized crime operations known to be responsible for car burglaries throughout the city.

The city announced Tuesday it will offer a cash reward system of up to $100,000 for individuals who provide accurate information, pending the arrest and conviction of the individuals involved.

More than $225,000 has been raised so far for this cause.

The frequent auto burglaries in San Francisco are not victimless crimes, they have real financial and emotional consequences for the victims, San Francisco Mayor London Breed said in a statement. These break-ins hurt our residents, especially working families who do not have the time or money to deal with the effects, as well as visitors to our City whose experiences are too often tarnished after an otherwise positive experience.

The peak of auto burglaries this year was recorded at 566 citywide incidents for the week ending July 4, according to San Francisco Police Department Compstat data.

Ever since Breeds initiative to expand police patrols in high-traffic businesses, there has been a 37 percent drop in auto burglaries from the July 4 numbers.

Breed assigned 26 additional police officers on bicycle and foot patrols to watch over highly sought-after travel destinations.

A total of 358 auto break-ins occurred in San Francisco for the week ending on Oct. 17, according to the citys most recent data.

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This Bay Area city is offering up to $100K for information on car burglaries - KRON4

October 19, 2021

San Francisco, CA Mayor London N. Breed today announced a privately funded cash reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of individuals involved in organized criminal fencing operations known to fuel vehicle smash-and-grabs. This initiative builds on Mayor Breed's recent expansion of community-based ambassadors and police patrols to high-traffic businesses, tourist, and retail destinations, which has resulted in a 37 percent drop in citywide auto burglaries from the year's July 4 highpoint to the most recent reporting period.

The new initiative is a keystone element in a comprehensive auto burglary strategy that aims to educate motorists and visitors; deter, investigate and arrest active auto burglars; and shut down the upstream criminal enterprises that traffic in stolen goods, fueling street-level auto burglaries. Investigators within the San Francisco Police Department and among regional law enforcement partner agencies in Northern California estimate that fewer than a dozen regular auto burglary crews are responsible for the large majority of auto burglaries that have plagued Bay Area cities in recent years.

"The frequent auto burglaries in San Francisco are not victimless crimes, they have real financial and emotional consequences for the victims and we're continuing to work to hold people who commit these crimes accountable," said Mayor Breed. "These break-ins hurt our residents, especially working families who do not have the time or money to deal with the effects, as well as visitors to our City whose experiences are too often tarnished after an otherwise positive experience. We've made good progress in recent months since announcing our Tourism Deployment Plan, but there's still more work to do to ensure that everyone feels safe on our streets. I want to thank our partners in the private sector who understand the urgency of this issue, and we want to be very clear to the organized groups who are responsible for the vast majority of these crimes that we are committing the resources and the manpower to hold you accountable."

The new cash reward system, which is being fully funded by private donors in the hospitality and tourism industry, will provide monetary incentives in exchange for information regarding high-level leaders of organized auto burglary fencing operations. Individuals that provide accurate and transparent information will be compensated up to $100,000 pending the arrest and conviction of individuals involved. In total, funds raised are in excess of $225,000 so far.

"Organized crime has been driving a lot of the theft in this city. The people at the top have been raking in huge sums of money by paying street-level criminals to do all their stealing for them, making working families miserable in the process. This initiative is going to help us take these rings apart," said Sharky Laguana, President, Small Business Commission.

Recent initiatives helping to reduce auto burglaries

In recent months, Mayor Breed has announced the strategic deployments of police and community-based ambassadors to support San Francisco's reemergence from COVID-19 restrictions and deter property crimes likely to accompany renewed economic activity including auto burglaries.

Mayor Breed's Tourism Deployment Plan, announced in July, assigned 26 additional police officers on bicycle and foot patrols to an array of high-traffic and highly sought-after travel destinations citywide. Public safety deployments of police officers and community-based partners were also key elements of the Mayor's Mid-Market Vibrancy and Safety Plan launched in May and the Organized Retail Crime Initiative, which Mayor Breed announced last month. The combined emphasis on high-visibility patrols in areas long targeted by auto burglars has been instrumental in reducing auto burglary rates even as tourism and economic activity begin returning to pre-pandemic levels.

The San Francisco Police Department has also stepped up its "Park Smart" public awareness campaign in recent months. Park Smart is a collaboration among SFPD, the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, the Department of Emergency Management, SF SAFE, the Fisherman's Wharf Community Benefit District, and local tourism and travel partners. Educating motorists and visitors on how to help prevent vehicle burglaries by taking common-sense precautions, Park Smart's recommended strategies when parking vehicles in San Francisco include placing items in trunks; never leaving valuables in view; and parking in lots staffed with attendants whenever possible.

2021 CompStat numbers on auto burglaries in San Francisco

According to San Francisco Police Department CompStat data, the 2021 highpoint for auto burglaries came just two weeks after California began to emerge from its COVID-19 lockdown, with 566 auto burglaries reported citywide for the week ending July 4, 2021.

Deployments of police and community-based patrols launched the following week under Mayor Breed's Tourism Deployment Plan have since led to a sustained drop in auto burglaries even with Fleet Week, San Francisco Giants post-season games, the return of Golden State Warriors' games to Chase Center and other attractions ushering in a comeback in visitors to the City.

SFPD CompStat data for the most recently reported period, for the week ending Oct. 17, 2021, show that a total of 358 auto break-ins were committed in San Francisco a drop of 37 percent from the July 4 holiday.

Auto burglary incident counts by year have generally trended down since 2017, when San Francisco recorded 31,409 such incidents. Although 2021 has predictably trended higher than the COVID-19 lockdown year of 2020, it remains well below pre-pandemic rates that reached 25,886 reported auto burglaries for the 2019 calendar year.

"Today's announcement adds a promising new tool to the coordinated efforts of public and private sector partners to fight auto burglaries in San Francisco," said Chief of Police Bill Scott. "We know the profit motives of a few upstream fencing operations are fueling thousands of auto burglaries and other kinds of thefts. This generously funded cash reward enables us to flip the script on profit motives creating an incentive that can help us bring these criminal enterprises to justice. On behalf of all of us in the San Francisco Police Department, we're grateful to the funders of this generous partnership with our City. We thank Mayor Breed for her leadership, and we're pleased to see strategic deployments of our officers and our community partners making progress to keep auto burglaries down. We're very hopeful that this new initiative will help make San Francisco's so-far successful efforts on auto burglaries even more successful moving forward."

Staff reductions due to unvaccinated officers won't affect patrol functions

Given the San Francisco Police Department's emphasis on adequately staffing such core police functions as patrol and investigations, reductions in force owing to unvaccinated SFPD members will have no effect on existing high-visibility deployments. Most SFPD employees, including all sworn members, were required to be fully vaccinated by Oct. 13, 2021 under the City's COVID-19 vaccination policy and the San Francisco County Health Officer's "Safer Return Together" health order. Following the Oct. 13 deadline last Thursday, 76 SFPD officers or 3.5 percent of the Department's sworn members remained unvaccinated and are ineligible to perform policing functions.

This press release was produced by the San Francisco Office of the Mayor. The views expressed here are the author's own.

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San Francisco Office Of The Mayor: Mayor London Breed Announces Privately Funded Rewards For Information Leading To Conviction - Patch.com

Police officers remain popular figures in America. A USA Today/Ipsos poll found that nearly three-quarters of Americans hold a favorable view of law enforcement, and 64% trust police and law enforcement to handle crime and public safety issues. Support for increased street patrols is even higher many Americans clearly think that police are necessary, effective and their presence correlates with safety.

But now, lets take a look at reality. Reality doesnt care how heroic police officers look on TV or what copoganda came across your social media feeds this week. Reality doesnt respect the misconception that more funding for police departments means safer streets. And reality, unfortunately, involves too many tragic outcomes involving the police.

Pittsburgh police responded to a call about an alleged bike theft in Bloomfield last Wednesday, which ended in the suspect being repeatedly tased. According to a press release from Pittsburgh police, he was taken to a hospital following his arrest, as is policy. Outside of the hospital, the suspect exhibited a medical emergency, the police said.

The suspects name was Jim Rogers, and he died less than 24 hours later. Some witnesses say he was suffering from a mental illness, and two neighbors described the police to WPXI as having used excessive force. Neither the Allegheny County police or Citizen Police Review Board, which are investigating this incident, have released findings yet, but we do know that tasers can be lethal. At least 500 deaths have been attributed to police use of tasers since 2010.

At every step of this horrible story, it appears that the police created or exacerbated issues. The bike was not valuable property that needed protection. It was for sale for $50, but the owner said after Rogerss arrest that he could have had it for free she was just trying to get rid of it. So this alleged bike theft, which witnesses described as a joy ride, resembled a favor more than a robbery.

The police did not need to resort to the use of force, or even make an arrest in this instance. Yes, the police say he was non-compliant while being taken into custody, but Rogers didnt harm anyone by riding the bike, and its doubtful that this was the start of a string of bike thefts. If Pittsburgh police have the time and money to be concerned about practically worthless bicycles, thats a case in and of itself to defund the bureau.

And finally, the police shouldnt have been called. Are we so afraid of our neighbors that we skip straight to calling the police? This situation could have easily been resolved by a friendly conversation instead of a violent arrest.

Rogers died, and for what? Nobody was protected from harm and nothing even remotely resembling justice was delivered. When Americans claim to trust law enforcement to handle a crime like this, is this what they envision?

Some might say situations like this are outliers, and that police are absolutely necessary keeping us safe. After all, without cops, who are you going to call if youre being robbed?

Police departments would like you to think that theyre doing valuable work to make cities safer and when crimes do occur, theyre able to track down the suspects. This myth-making helps keep the public on the side of law enforcement at a conceptual level, even if they generally agree that reform is needed. Reality, once again, is much different.

Under some circumstances, police seem to be successful at deterring violent crime. Some cities see reductions in serious offenses when more officers are added to the force, but some, particularly ones in the South and Midwest with the largest Black populations, do not. However, no matter how the violent crime rate is affected, a surge in arrests for low-level offenses, particularly among Black people, is a consistent byproduct of increasing the number of police officers.

These arrests are often for things like loitering and drug possession crimes that, just like the alleged bike theft, arent really hurting anyone. The suffering related to these crimes only kicks in when the police become involved, and people are unnecessarily arrested, injured or even killed at the hands of law enforcement. There must be ways to prevent violent crime without side effects such as increased arrests for victimless, low-level crimes and racial profiling.

When crimes do occur, they often go unsolved. Federal data from 2018 shows that only 45.5% of all violent crimes reported to American police are cleared, which usually results in a suspects arrest. Just 62.3% of murders and, shockingly, only about a third of rapes are solved. Property crimes are cleared at even lower rates.

A majority of violent crime victims also choose not to report the incidents to police. This seems to be driven by the fact that 69% of people prefer rehabilitation, mental health treatment, drug treatment, community supervision or community service to jail time as a form of accountability for perpetrators.

If the goal of policing is to deter crime and punish those who commit it, then police are unable to do the former without inflicting arguably greater harm than the crimes. In terms of the latter, police are highly ineffective and, regardless, this goal doesnt seem to align with what the people they supposedly serve want.

Right now, law enforcement destroys more than it makes right. Jim Rogerss life was destroyed over a $50 bike. An institution that so consistently produces these senselessly tragic outcomes should be despised by the public, not venerated.

Jack Troy writes about politics, SGB and being tired of capitalism. Write to him at [emailprotected].

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Opinion | What good are police? - The Pitt News