Criminals are ransacking stores at will in California.
That kind of lawlessness is dead on arrival in Florida.
And Ron DeSantis demolished Gavin Newsom with this epic truth bomb on crime.
Retail theft has become a crisis in blue states
Retail theft is surging in Democratic strongholds like California, New York, and Washington, D.C.
Organized retail theft gangs are looting stores and getting away with it because of soft-on-crime policies championed by Democrats.
Soros-backed prosecutors refuse to bring charges against shoplifters, and in the rare instance that they do, it is a slap on the wrist.
In San Francisco, major retailers have been forced to close their doors because of rampant shoplifting.
The stores that remain open often have entire sections of goods locked down in plastic cases.
Shoplifting in New York City has jumped by 83%, it is up 81% in Los Angeles, and 24% in San Francisco.
Florida cracks down on retail theft
Since Florida Governor Ron DeSantis took office in 2019, shoplifting in the state has declined by 30%.
And he signed a bill to crack down on porch piracy and retail theft in the Sunshine State.
HB 549 enhances the charges for retail theft and strengthens the penalties for organized gangs that participate in it.
DeSantis said during a press conference that Florida is a law-and-order state and that criminals who steal will get punished.
“Florida is taking another step to distinguish ourselves from lawless jurisdictions and keep our residents and businesses safe,” DeSantis said. “If you steal in Florida, we will catch you and we will prosecute you.”
He proceeded to lay into the failed policies in California that fueled the rise in retail theft.
“You look at a place like California, they passed Proposition 47 that allows people that commit retail theft to be charged with a misdemeanor, even if it had traditionally been a felony,” DeSantis said. “That means they get numerous retail theft offenses. Did they get held accountable? No, they get a slap on the wrist.”
DeSantis explained that criminals know that they can steal with impunity because they know they will never be held accountable.
This has ruined the quality of life for law-abiding citizens and driven up prices.
“Now, that has an impact on you as a consumer because the prices will go up to reflect those stolen goods. That’s just basic business,” DeSantis said. “It also just has a demoralizing effect on people. When you go in, you want to buy toothpaste and it’s like Fort Knox because it’s all under lock and key for basic items. You got to get a clerk to come and open it and all this stuff just to do basic shopping. That is not something that is good for quality of life. And then, of course, if you can have people come in and just steal retail and walk out, that creates a contempt for the rule of law that has a spillover effect in areas far beyond retail theft.”
Florida is holding criminals accountable and standing up for the rule of law.
DeSantis Daily will keep you up-to-date on any new developments in this ongoing story.
