Sacramento City Attorney Susana Alcala Wood's office reportedly threatened to fine a local Target for reporting theft, calling it a public nuisance. (Google Maps)
Gov. Gavin Newsom, Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas, and Senator Mike McGuire are pushing a package with 14 bills that tighten penalties on retail theft offenses. The lawmakers believe their legislation will help deal with retail theft crimes, rather than pass changes to Proposition 47.
Last month, California’s Secretary of State announced that petitioners had garnered more than enough signatures to place a measure to reform Proposition 47 on the November ballot. Prop 47, a voter-approved initiative passed in 2014, loosened the penalties for drug and theft crimes in California and has been blamed for California's rampant theft problems.
Shortly after the measure to reform Prop 47 was approved, legislators in the Democrat-controlled Capitol in Sacramento began debating legislation that they say would address crime in the state. Critics say the move is essentially a "poison pill" that Democrats will use to discourage people from voting to fix Prop 47 in November by arguing that doing so would undo the legislation that combats crime.
Thieves ransack a gas station in Oakland, California. (KTVU)
She also said retailers are being victimized by the government for failing to protect them.
"Now the government seeks to silence those retailers and, in turn, manufacturers lower crime rates," Castronova said. "No citizen should ever be penalized for lawfully calling upon its government for protection."
Alexander Gammelgard, president of the California Police Chiefs Association, testified during the State Assembly’s first retail theft committee meeting in December, saying he was surprised anyone would ever attempt to make a nuisance case out of someone calling to report a legitimate crime.
"I don’t think there is a place for that," Gammelgard said.
NEWSOM URGED TO HALT PROGRESSIVES' 'SCHEMING' TO DERAIL POPULAR ANTI-CRIME INITIATIVE
Sacramento police responded to numerous calls for theft at one of the city's Target stores, prompting city officials to reportedly issue a warning to the store that it could face fines. (Sacramento Police)
The location in question has drawn criticism from the local community, as reported by a local CBS station.
Sacramento City Councilman Rick Jennings II, city police and the city attorney’s office reportedly put together a plan after seeing the reports, to meet with the retail store and produce a safety plan to mitigate incidents, the Sacramento Bee discovered through a public records request.
"It would be great to be at the store and show what we have actually [been] working on to address the concern raised most recently in all the news this week," Alex Garcia, a former director of Target’s governmental affairs, wrote in an email regarding past news coverage. The note was sent to Dennis Rodgers, Jennings’ chief-of-staff.
GOV GAVIN NEWSOM UNDER FIRE FOR 'BOLD-FACED LIE' ABOUT NATIONAL GUARD AT SOUTHERN BORDER
California Gov. Gavin Newsom was recently ripped by critics for describing California as a "national model" for combatting homelessness. (California Governor Gavin Newsom YouTube channel)
As a result of the collaboration, the Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design was created to address concerns brought up in the reports.
The plan also included "placement of security measures such as alarms, cameras, and security personnel" along with the implementation of "light fixtures, landscaping, wayfinding and space activation measures," the internal communications reportedly showed.
During the meetings, city officials also got a chance to discuss their "concerns" with Target, which also acknowledged its "problems," according to a statement from Jennings.
The concerns raised, though, are still vague.
Fox News Digital reached out to both Target and the City of Sacramento for a statement but did not immediately hear back.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
The publication reported that data from the police department shows city law enforcement officials saw an increase in theft, robbery and shoplifting at the city’s three Target locations during 2023.
In 2023, Target locations in Sacramento reportedly had 375 calls for service for theft, robbery and shoplifting, compared to the 80 crimes reported for theft, robbery and shoplifting by Sacramento police in 2023.
Fox News Digital's Andrew Mark Miller contributed to this report.
Greg Wehner is a breaking news reporter for Fox News Digital.
Story tips and can be sent to Greg.Wehner@Fox.com and on Twitter @GregWehner.
Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more Fox News politics content.
Subscribed
You've successfully subscribed to this newsletter!
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/sacramento-city-attorney-reportedly-threatened-fine-target-store-reporting-theft-crimes