Fed up with repeat offenders and rising crime rates, Californians took to the polls in November and said “enough,” with voters in Alameda County recalling woke District Attorney Pam Price and those in Los Angeles County rejecting Soros-backed District Attorney George Gascón’s reelection bid.
Statewide, voters overwhelmingly approved Proposition 36, which was an attempt at reversing parts of the disastrous soft-on-crime Proposition 47 that voters there passed in 2014. Here’s a quick refresher on what Prop. 36 does:
Proposition 36 would walk back much of the decade-old Proposition 47, turning some theft misdemeanors into felonies, requiring a warning about a possible murder charge for selling or providing drugs, and creating a new “treatment-mandated felony,” according to the nonpartisan Legislative Analyst’s Office.[…]Under Proposition 36, theft would be classified as a felony offense if the suspect has two or more past convictions for certain theft crimes, such as shoplifting, burglary and carjacking. The sentence would then be up to three years in county jail or state prison.
Prop. 36 went into effect Wednesday the 18th, and it’s already bearing fruit in places like Sacramento County:
Law enforcement is already making arrests and putting people in jail.[…]Sacramento County Sheriff’s deputies in the organized retail theft unit are undercover this week for “Operation Ugly Sweater.”The team of deputies undercover inside two businesses and outside in the parking lot are searching for shoplifters showing up in stores, alongside paying shoppers buying gifts for the holidays.[…]”Our officers are feeling more empowered,” Cater said. “We’re not just racking up another citation. Our officers feel like what they’re doing matters and that they want to do the extra legwork to make sure that we get a good conviction.”
Jeff Reisig, the District Attorney for Yolo County (which is next door to Sacto County), eagerly shared the video of the KCRA report on the retail crime crackdown there:
San José Mayor Matt Mahan was equally elated to see the work the San José Police Department was doing after Prop. 36 went into effect:
Ventura County is also on the move:
The San Francisco Police Department took action as well:
San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins, elected last month to her first full term, also wasted no time getting down to business after Prop. 36 became official:
San Francisco prosecutors have charged their first suspect under Proposition 36, which toughened penalties for minor property and drug offenses.
Martinez Guillory, 51, had a loaded gun and was carrying heroin and cocaine that he intended to sell when cops stopped him for evading fares Wednesday at the Civic Center BART station, the San Francisco district attorney’s office said.[…]If convicted, Guillory could face tougher sentencing thanks to the passage of Prop. 36, a spokesperson for District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said. The charges come just two days after the law went into effect.
In tweets, she’s boasted about how Prop. 36 has helped out her office:
Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer was eager to talk about Prop. 36 going into effect and what it would mean for his community:
In Shasta County, the Redding Police Department conducted police stings:
Voters who supported Prop. 36 are, of course, cheering the steady return to sanity (at least on the crime front) in the Golden State:
A friendly reminder that Gov. Gavin Newsom strongly opposed Prop. 36
Vice President Kamala Harris, who is rumored to be considering a gubernatorial run in 2026, would not say how she voted on it:
The bottom line? “It’s a new day” in Calfornia:
… and we are so here for it. It’s about time.
— Stacey Matthews has also written under the pseudonym “Sister Toldjah” and can be reached via Twitter. —
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