Shoplifting is one of the most common crimes. In New Mexico, it just got easier.
Jerry Hannon won't let me shoplift.
Hannon is the director of "loss prevention" at the Santa Fe branch of a major national retailer. I reach Hannon after contacting representatives from more than a dozen major retail stores. All refuse to comment on their shoplifting policies, let alone give me permission to shoplift under supervision in their stores.
Hannon agrees to talk to me, but only under the condition I allow him a pseudonym and not identify his employer.
He has reason to be cautious.
Shoplifting is one of the most common and least reported crimes in the country, costing the retail industry more than $10 billion every year. Research cited by the Department of Justice suggests that only one in every 150 shoplifting incidents results in police action. Statistics from the National Association for
Shoplifting Prevention (NASP) estimate an individual shoplifter gets caught only once out of every 49 attempts.
Because shoplifting is an under-reported crime, it's difficult to gauge just how many shoplifters actually walk out of Santa Fe stores every day. But an SFR analysis of shoplifting arrests and citations in Santa Fe during the first six months of 2006 reveals a number of trends that open up multiple racial and socioeconomic cans of worms.
I had hoped to determine how easy, or difficult, it is to steal from Santa Fe stores by conducting a supervised field experiment, but it was a no-go. The loss-prevention arena is shrouded in secrecy; retail security is a house of cards held together with Orwellian paranoia. They
want
you to think a store has radio transmitters in the shopping carts and hidden cameras secreted in select boxes of Count Chocula. They don't want you to know how easy it is-or that it just got even easier.
This summer, news leaked that Wal-Mart
has changed its zero-tolerance policy of shoplifter prosecution to a less stringent strategy of allowing petty first-time offenders off with a warning. At the same time, a new state law, House Bill 80 (the "Equitable Sentencing Schedule") went into effect July 1. The law effectively increases the amount of merchandise one has to steal in order to be charged with a misdemeanor or felony shoplifting offense. Industry insiders say the new state
law bucks an average trend of heightening penalties. The Wal-Mart policy, on the other hand, reflects a widely accepted approach to shoplifting within the retail business. Namely, the price of prosecuting petty theft is more draining for companies than simply allowing thieves to walk away unscathed.
Wal-Mart decided months ago that it simply cost too much time
and money to send Grandma to the hoosegow for nabbing a box of Efferdent. It wasn't a new theory-Hannon says it's become common retail practice-but it was news to everyone else when the New York Times announced the policy shift to the world after an internal memo was leaked to the watchdog Web site
.
"Major chains have done that for years, they just didn't publicize it," says Chris McGoey, a loss-protection consultant based in Los Angeles. "Wal-Mart was trying to make an internal decision and it was leaked. They've tried to clean up the leak by saying they're going to focus on organized crime but I don't think that's really what they're doing. For them, it's a financial decision."
According to statistics compiled by Hayes International, a Florida consulting firm specializing in loss prevention, major retail companies spend about 40 hours prosecuting each
shoplifting apprehension they make. McGoey-whose expertise has been featured on everything from
60 Minutes
and
Dateline
to
CSI
and
Inside Edition
-says that makes the cost of prosecution too high for most retailers to stomach.
"The numbers just don't pencil out," McGoey says. "The theory is that it's simply cheaper to let these guys go and let the thieves take what they're going to take."
Hannon says the threat of lawsuits stemming from false arrests or the use of excessive force by security staff has made companies even more reluctant to prosecute offenders while shifting the focus from apprehension to prevention.
"If we can't get a prevent, they don't even really want us to stop them," Hannon says. "If you decide to prosecute somebody for a $1.50 item at our store, the corporation is not going to back you. You're basically on your own."
Industry insiders like McGoey say that Wal-Mart's new policy is also driven by the push to cut payroll dollars. But despite the policy shift and extensive loss-prevention lay-offs, Wal-Mart spokeswoman Marisa Bluestone insists Wal-Mart will still aggressively pursue shoplifters.
"It's not going to impact our policy of catching shoplifters," Bluestone says. "We're still going to catch them-and we're really good at that-the difference is whether or not we prosecute
them. For those people who are intent on making a living stealing from us, we will put them in jail like we always have."
Bluestone confirms Wal-Mart will be "concentrating our resources on organized theft rings that involve high-dollar losses, putting our prosecution policies in line with other retailers and reducing the burden on local police."
But for Barbara Staib-spokeswoman for the National Association for Shoplifting Prevention-the policy translates into a Get Out of Jail Free card for petty thieves.
"Our organization is concerned about retailers appearing to give tacit approval to theft in their stores," Staib says. "You're basically sending the message that it's not so bad. Shoplifting has become a quasi-acceptable crime and that's a problem."
Staib's assertion is backed up by a 66-page guidebook on shoplifting produced in September 2003 by the Department of Justice's Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS).
According to the report, only one in 150 incidents leads to apprehension and police action. Furthermore, the report states, most retailers acquiesce to shoplifting as long as the rate of "shrinkage" (the term for the theft and damage of goods, not a
Seinfeld
reference) doesn't rise above 3 percent of total goods sold.
State Rep. Hector Balderas, D-Wagon Mound, is familiar with shrinkage. As a lawyer, Balderas has both prosecuted and defended shoplifting cases. He also served on the front lines of the shoplifting war in college as a JC Penney loss-prevention agent.
"When we made a catch, it felt more symbolic than anything else," Balderas says. "I always got the sense that even if we caught one or two a day, by all means we didn't stop a large
percentage of them."
Balderas sponsored HB 80, which he says has been in development since 1999, but repeatedly failed to gain legislative approval. Balderas succeeded in part because of endorsements from groups like the Association of Commerce and Industry and the District Attorneys Association.
"I didn't hear any concerns during the session," Balderas says. "I've taken a little bit of criticism after the bill passed with some people focused strictly on shoplifting and framing it like we were giving a break to shoplifters."
Among other things, the legislation effectively rolls back the minimum dollar amount required for shoplifting offenses. A petty misdemeanor has changed from under $100 to under $250. The amount for a misdemeanor was changed from between $100
and $250 to between $250 and $500, and the amount for a fourth-degree felony was changed from between $250 and $2,500 to between $500 and $2,500.
The state's larceny provision pertaining to stolen livestock-in which the offender is charged with a third-degree felony regardless of the value-remained the same. In theory, that means someone who steals a chicken is liable for a felony and someone who takes $249 worth of frozen chicken gets a petty misdemeanor.
The reason for the change, Balderas says, is primarily to relieve the burden on district court, where felony shoplifting cases had previously been weighed.
"It's shifting the jurisdiction so that we can kind of more intelligently pick our battles in an already overburdened criminal justice system," Balderas says. "It's almost ludicrous to make the argument that a $300 shoplifting case is as important or more important to the
community interest than a felony vehicular homicide."
That doesn't mean that Balderas hasn't received flack from store owners who feel the shoplifting penalties have been gutted. Staib says the law essentially forces retailers to fend for themselves.
"You're basically telling retailers in New Mexico not to bother unless it's over $250," Staib says. "As a stand-alone policy it's fine-and I'm sure the legislators had good reasons for
introducing it-but the gaps in those policies are where the shoplifter wins."
They may have already won. Rick Hale, vice president of store operations for the Santa Fe grocery store Kaune Foodtown, says that independent stores were already fending for themselves before the new law went into effect.
"I don't really expect to see any change," Hale says. "They've been lenient in the past and they're going to continue to be lenient in the future. There just doesn't seem to be any consequences."
Kaune Foodtown has had to do its own creative interpretation of the laws in order to prevent shoplifting. After seeing shoplifter after shoplifter released with nothing more than a slap on the wrist, Hale says his store is looking to catch repeat offenders by charging them under trespassing, not shoplifting, laws.
"That way word will get around that we're not such an easy target," Hale says. "I don't know any other way to deal with it as the system exists."
While the minimum dollar amounts for misdemeanor and felony shoplifting have increased, Balderas insists that the ability for judges to levy penalties (particularly against
repeat offenders) remains intact.
"Some people are upset because they think we weakened the penalty," Balderas says. "But in reality, judges still have enough jail discretion to sentence offenders to serious jail time."
Terrence Shulman, a recovering shoplifter from Detroit and founder of Cleptomaniacs (sic) And
Shoplifters Anonymous (CASA), says the combined effect of the new Wal-Mart policy and the new state law will probably equate to more shoplifting.
"I think there will be an increase with shoplifting both at Wal-Mart and within New Mexico," Shulman says. "How significant? I don't know. But even if those people are caught, is that really going to stop them from doing it again? How many times do people continue to drink and drive even when they know the consequences?"
Balderas points out that the New Mexico law is still in its infant stages, but he doesn't expect the new legislation to
have a significant effect on shoplifting rates.
"Generally speaking, the crime is not affected by the statute," Balderas says. "I think shoplifting is impacted more by other issues like age, drugs or economics than it is statutory. The person's record will dictate their penalty more than the statute will."
It's also presumably too early tell what, if any, effect the new Wal-Mart policy will have on the company's shoplifting rates or-more importantly-its profit margins. Not that Wal-Mart would tell us if they knew.
"We'd rather not share that information," Bluestone says with a disconcerting laugh. "We don't want the thieves out there to know our secrets."
We'll let you in on a secret.
Organized theft rings may be the retail industry's threat
du jour
, but only about 5 percent of all shoplifters (and 10 percent of theft losses) are professional thieves. Moreover,
Wal-Mart probably doesn't have to lose sleep over the prospect of Santa Fe crime syndicates pillaging their aisles.
An analysis of Santa Fe Police Department arrest and citation records indicates that shoplifting in the city is more of an individual affair.
There were approximately 193 arrests made and citations issued in Santa Fe between Jan. 1 and July 15 of this year. It's safe to say those figures account for only a small fraction of the shoplifting incidents that occurred in the city during that time frame.
"Most police reports are very understated," Staib says. "A lot of stores don't even have in-store security,
so they don't apprehend shoplifters. And few retailers actually go so far as the police, particularly with petty theft."
Motivations for shoplifting are often nebulous, even to the shoplifters themselves, but are typically broken down into two categories: necessity and opportunity. But while the image of an unemployed father stealing diapers for his children tugs at the heart strings, McGoey says the vast majority of shoplifting cases are driven by opportunity.
"I've arrested a priest before," McGoey says. "Cops get arrested [for shoplifting] all the time. And then look at the celebrity cases. Most people don't have an inherent need to steal, but they do it anyway."
Nonetheless, Hannon-who worked loss-protection at retail stores in the Midwest before coming to Santa Fe-says that shoplifting cases in Santa Fe seem to be driven by need more than any other city where he's worked.
"I definitely didn't expect there to be as much shoplifting here as what I've seen," Hannon says. "I'd say
here in Santa Fe it's predicated more on necessity than other places I've been, but it's still only about 20 percent of the people we catch who are honestly doing it because they need it."
Shoplifting experts and retail analysts are quick to point out that there is no cookie-cutter way to identify a typical shoplifter. But, like the Supreme Court's definition of pornography, Hannon says he knows a shoplifter when he sees one.
"Ninety percent of the time I can see somebody walk in and I know what they're thinking before they think it," Hannon says. "A lot of it is in their eye contact and the way they walk, which I'd call a sort of nonchalant run."
Statistics culled from organizations like NASP, CASA and the Department of Justice suggest that shoplifting is an equal-opportunity crime. Shoplifting offenders typically stretch across economic and ethnic boundaries as well as age and gender classifications.
Indeed, the numbers culled from the police reports scrutinized by SFR [see
below] bear out the
notion of shoplifting offenders running the demographic gamut. But several glaring trends nonetheless emerge that raise considerable questions about issues of class and race in Santa Fe.
A vast majority (77.6 percent) of those arrested for shoplifting in Santa Fe had Hispanic listed under their ethnic origin. In particular, Hispanic males between the ages of 25 and 35 accounted for nearly a third (31 percent) of all arrests, the most out of any group. Like all statistics, those numbers are open to interpretation, but they prompt the question: "Are there more people of Hispanic origin shoplifting or is that demographic targeted more by security personnel?"
"I wouldn't even attempt to answer why that is," says SFPD Deputy Chief Stan Mascarenas. "I think before you can even begin to answer those kind of questions, you have to know all of the factors involved. Statistics can defend or challenge any kind of statement or speculation I might make."
In theory, Shulman says, loss-protection professionals are taught to target potential shoplifters regardless of their ethnicity or apparent economic standing.
"Ideally, they're trained to look at behavior patterns rather than a specific profile," Shulman says. "There is no
typical profile of a shoplifter, but that doesn't mean profiling doesn't happen. That's unfortunate in many ways because I think they miss a lot of people who don't fit that profile."
Balderas says that while many factors likely play into Santa Fe numbers, his own experience in the loss-protection world taught him that racial profiling does occur.
"Some shrinkage or theft-control programs are very sophisticated, very color-blind and blind to socioeconomics," Balderas says. "But in my experience, there are loss-prevention employees who do stereotype. The numbers could be skewed if you
have loss-prevention programs that only focus on a certain ethnicity or socioeconomic look."
Balderas says that economics could certainly play a role in the statistical disparity. Of the offenders whose police reports listed an occupation, most were either unemployed or working in blue-collar jobs, primarily in the construction industry.
Most of the shoplifting offenses also occurred on the city's south side, home to both a majority of Santa Fe's major
retail stores and where many of the city's low-income residents reside. But, as McGoey points out, the overwhelming majority of shoplifting cases do not involve an overarching necessity.
"You could make a list longer than your arm of justifications of why people steal," McGoey says. "Some people do it for need. Some do it for the thrill. But a lot of people steal simply because they figure the store has so much money it won't matter."
It matters to me.
Which is how I find myself standing at the entrance of Wal-Mart, preparing to rob them blind. I'll show them shrinkage. They, in turn, will show me how easy (or not) it is to steal and, if I'm caught, whether the penalties are as advertised.
But I'll need help. Among the many criminal qualities I lack, nonchalance is one. Which is why I plan to take a page from Santa Fe's own Candice Martinez-the so-called "Cell Phone
Bandit," sentenced to 12 years in prison last March for robbing four Virginia banks while chatting on her cellie-except for one small problem.
No service.
I'll have to do it the old-fashioned way, with one minor exception: I don't plan to actually steal anything. I merely want to see if I can walk out of the store without paying for an item and then promptly return to pay for it and thus reward Wal-Mart for being an unwitting participant in my little field experiment.
Upon entering the store, I'm saluted by an elderly gentleman put out to pasture as a Wal-Mart "greeter." Not just a friendly gesture on the store's part, but a security measure to see
who is walking in with merchandise to refund and who walks in with the intention of refunding items already on the shelves.
The old man has a female counterpart manning the exit (the "goodbyer"?), the pair painting
American Gothic
for a
new generation. Once inside, I immediately recognize I will face formidable resistance.
For one thing, Wal-Mart employs roughly half the population of Santa Fe County. There's an "associate" wearing the store's trademark "How may I help you?" blue vest in nearly every aisle of the store. The ceiling is also covered in a sea of dark plastic domes, presumably shielding more security cameras than the casino floor at the MGM Grand.
It is intimidating. And that's the point.
I'm not going to throw the game for the home team, but I'm not trying to be inconspicuous either. I wander aimlessly for several minutes before grabbing a canister of lemon-scented
Comet, a bottle of Cascade dish detergent (also Lemon) and a six-pack of Diet Pepsi (hey, everyone needs groceries). Then I spot my quarry.
A green bag of Burstin' Bits watermelon popping candy, the Wal-Mart equivalent of Pop Rocks, boasting a staggering retail price of…44 cents. It's not the Hope Diamond, but adequate for my purposes.
After making a circuitous route of the cavernous store, I clumsily stuff the candy in my pocket and head for the checkout line.
At any moment I feel like a SWAT team in blue vests holding submachine guns could rappel from the ceiling and foil
my little caper. But they don't.
Instead, the bored-looking man running the cash register barely looks up as he scans my groceries. I
pay and turn to leave. The goodbyer is gone. The electronic detector doesn't ring. I walk out the door and to my car, ready for somebody to tackle me from behind. But they don't.
I walk back into the store a minute later and approach the same cashier.
"I walked out with these, sorry," I announce meekly, holding up the Burstin' Bits as I plop two quarters in the man's hand.
The cashier glances up, unmoved.
"Yeah," he says. "It happens."
By the Numbers
SFR examined nearly 200 shoplifting reports that resulted in either an arrest or a citation by the Santa Fe Police Department during the first six months of this year. Specific demographic information (ethnicity, age, gender, etc.) was taken from arrest reports, only as citation reports often excluded such information. The following is a statistical breakdown of the Ws-Who, What, When, Where-of Santa Fe shoplifting taken from those police reports:
193.
Approximate number of total shoplifting arrests and citations handled by the Santa Fe Police Department between Jan. 1 and July 15, 2006.
75.
Percentage of those arrested who were male. The gender divide between shoplifting offenders is split equally in most national statistics.
77.6.
Percentage of people arrested for shoplifting that had "Hispanic" listed for their ethnic origin (15.5 percent were listed as "Anglo," 3.8 percent "Native American," 1.9 percent "Black" and less than 1 percent were "Asian/Pacific Islander").
31.
Percentage of all shoplifting arrests that involved Hispanic males between the ages of 25 and 35, the most
out of any demographic group.
15.
Age of the youngest
offender, a girl who allegedly stole a $20 Dickies T-shirt from Mervyn's in Santa Fe Place.
64.
Age of the oldest offender, a woman who allegedly carted away $256 worth of clothing from Dillard's in Santa Fe Place.
39.2.
Percentage of those arrested for shoplifting who were
between the ages of 20 and 30, the largest percentage of any age group.
64.
Percentage of shoplifting arrests that occurred between noon and 5 pm, by far the busiest time frame.
97.
Percentage of total shoplifting arrests and citations that occurred between noon and midnight.
40.
Approximate number of Santa Fe stores (ranging from major retailers to mom-and-pop shops and gas
stations to grocery stores) that saw at least one shoplifting arrest or citation.
45.6.
Percentage of all arrests and citations that specifically occurred at Dillard's, Mervyn's, Wal-Mart,
K-Mart and Home Depot.
35.
Total number of arrests made and citations issued at Dillard's, the highest of any store in Santa Fe.
$1.55.
The smallest dollar
amount taken that resulted in a shoplifting arrest, for a 24-ounce can of Budweiser taken from Andy's Liquorette by a 41-year-old woman.
$835.
The highest dollar amount taken that resulted in a shoplifting arrest, for an assortment of
electronics taken from Target by a 37-year-old man.
76.
Percentage of incidents where less than $100 in merchandise was taken, the old benchmark for a petty misdemeanor shoplifting offense in New Mexico.
88.
Percentage of incidents where less than $250 in merchandise was taken, the new benchmark for a petty misdemeanor shoplifting offense in New Mexico.
11.3.
Percentage of incidents
where between $250 and $500 in merchandise was taken, the old benchmark for a fourth-degree felony
shoplifting offense in New Mexico.
2.9.
Percentage of incidents where between $500 and $2,500 in merchandise was taken, the new benchmark for a fourth-degree felony shoplifting offense in
New Mexico.
2.
Number of Tupac
albums (
All Eyez on Me
and
Me Against the World
if you're keeping score at
home) taken from FYE in Santa
Fe Place by a 33-year-old female.
2.
Number of 12" miter saws taken from Home Depot on two separate occasions.
1.
Terrible movie starring Bruce Willis (
Hart's War
) taken from Wal-Mart by a 20-year-old male. Hey, at least it wasn't
Hudson Hawk
.
