One Day More?!

The fallacy of a modern day Les Misérables.

Photo: LAPD

There is a game being played by our blue states and cities. It’s called Les Misérables. In this game, politicians categorize citizens as either Jean Valjeans or Javerts. Actual criminals who steal, loot, and murder are postured as Jean Valjeans. Politicians then assert that our current criminal justice system is uniquely unfair to perpetrators of color just as it was to the main character of Les Misérables who served nineteen years for stealing a loaf of bread. Conversely, those who believe in jurisprudence are the Javerts and are labeled unrelenting, inflexible law enforcers who lack compassion. The game is to make the Jean Valjeans martyrs while attempting to browbeat the Javerts.

The problem with this game is that when Victor Hugo wrote Les Misérables, there were no welfare systems and no food stamps. Then, the schism between rich versus poor was magnified by a society that didn’t offer second chances to offenders and exiled women who had children out of wedlock.

Nonetheless, today’s politicians seeking justice reform in the United States are doing so under the guise of fairness. But at what cost? Every time you go to a mall, shop for groceries, pick up a prescription, or make a stop at a convenience store, you are taking your life in your hands. While you are choosing objects to purchase, lawbreakers fill pillow cases like children trick-or-treating at Halloween. While you stand in line to pay, criminals take their sacks of stolen goods and saunter out the front door. No one stops them. Retail theft is becoming so out of control that family owned shops and larger businesses are deciding to close rather than continually take the hit.

Meanwhile, Leftist politicians attempt to dupe citizens into believing every thief is Jean Valjean. For, there must be some dire need for pinched items. Basically, criminals’ backgrounds need to be considered first rather than the crime committed. We can agree that reduced penalties are understandable if the person was destitute and stealing a loaf of bread to feed his family. We are not living in the merciless setting depicted in Les Misérables; but, for goodness sake, we’ve gone the complete opposite direction. Prosecutors are letting repeat offenders walk, and the same offenders commit even more crimes. Yet where is the restitution for owners of businesses?

We have 10 million unfilled jobs, according to jobs expert Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. That means, thieves could actually work for a living. Additionally, we have government welfare and food programs for the poor. We, also, have charities. But no reporters seemed to ask about jobs, government programs, or private charities as New York City’s Mayor Adams put forth yet another program to stem the tide of retail theft.

We need to get to the root of the underlying issues facing criminals, you see. We need to understand what makes them tick. So to assist proprietors, patrons, and purloiners, Mayor Adams in concert with a team comprised of the Attorney General, the New York Police Department, DAs, national retailers, union leaders, etc. have come up with a “comprehensive” plan.

First, New Yorkers need to be mindful that many of these criminals are poverty-stricken and may have mental health issues. So the plan addresses this by ensuring non-violent offenders get a second chance and avoid incarceration. In addition, the mayor and his team expect businesses to give de-escalation training to their employees. But the most eye opening proposal is to “install resource kiosks in stores to connect individuals in need to critical government resources and social services”(Retail Theft Report).

Imagine. John Smith waltzes into Home Depot and begins stuffing power tools down his pants. An employee sees John Smith stealing and tries to de-escalate the situation by talking with John about why he is stealing power tools. Perhaps the employee tries to be funny and says, “Are those power tools in your pants or are you happy to see me?” The two chuckle. Then the employee takes John over to a computer where John completes an online form in order to receive government or social services, so he doesn’t need to steal power tools anymore.

Does anyone truly think this is going to work? Or, do we already know John will decide that leaving quickly with all his “free” stuff will be more beneficial to him than filling out information at a kiosk where he will have to provide his name and address (if he has one) to receive government assistance?

Here’s a better plan: When John Smith comes into the store and stuffs power tools down his pants, an employee calls the police, and John Smith is arrested. There must be something missing. It’s too simple. Let’s see how others handle calamities.

When Illinois’ Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx raised the felony theft threshold to $1,000, it unsurprisingly caused an uptick in retail theft. This justice reform became an invitation for shoplifters to pilfer products with totals just under $1,000. Thieves knew there’d be no meaningful repercussions as long as they could add prices together to stay under $1,000. Though math is a big ask for former students of CPS, they’ve made it work. With certainty, Foxx blundered but reduction of felony crimes to misdemeanors was nothing new.

Californians voted for Proposition 47 in 2014, which also reduced the sentencing of certain crimes from felonies to misdemeanors. Now that they’ve seen the error of their ways, a new bill called Assembly Bill 1708 would provide stiffer penalties for repeat offenders while also “allowing those charged with petty theft with prior convictions to participate in a diversion program for substance abuse and mental health treatment”(ABC 7 News). In other words, even repeat offenders will walk. Democrat assembly member Al Muratsuchi is introducing this bill as a “common sense fix.” It has taken almost a decade for California politicians and voters to admit that their initial common sense measure wasn’t so common sensical after all. But trust them; they now have it all figured out.

In Portland, as tent cities become even more immense, some are wising up to mobility issues caused by tents on sidewalks—especially for those in wheelchairs or those using canes. Now homeless “campsites” will be moved to designated areas if the tents hamper the movement of those with disabilities. But, alas, mobility is the least of Portland’s issues.

Fox News reported, “Businesses are struggling given the 11.1% increase in year-over-year property crime and 16.9% rise in burglaries last year, as seen in Portland Police Bureau data.” In April, retailer REI announced it was leaving Portland due to theft, which seems incredibly, Javert-ishly harsh. Where will the homeless burgle for their tents now?

There are debates regarding the link between homeless encampments and crime surges. In last year’s NPR’s article “Homeless camps are often blamed for crime but experts say it's not so simple,” one expert studying crime and the homeless sees no correlation. However, former suburban-Seattle police chief Carol Cummings believes that his data is skewed because many people have given up calling the police to report crimes.

Whatever side of this debate you are on, this constant barrage of overzealous Leftist benevolence instead of discernment is causing tax paying citizens and businesses to flee. Blue cities will all start looking like Detroit. Then what?

Any parent can tell politicians that if there are no consequences for disruptive behavior, the disruptive behavior will continue. But this doesn’t mean that there isn’t room for judicial reforms. For example, those who have been serving decades in prison for crimes which if committed today would carry low to no jail time should be released. However, instead of focusing on that angle of reform, we are seeing too many repeat offenders receiving mere slaps on the wrist. Add to this the amount of illegal immigrants being placed in already depressed areas, and we have a powder keg ready to explode.

The fact that Democrat voters, mayors, and governors have encouraged chaos by circumventing existing laws due to diversity, equity, and inclusion has led to crises all over the country. But there may be a glimmer of hope.

San Francisco’s mayor London Breed spoke for the younger generation of San Franciscans when questioning the heinous crimes the city faces. She asked, "Why should someone else's rights be put before their needs and their safety and what they deserve, too, in a place like San Francisco that claims to be so compassionate and liberal. What about them?” (CBS News). Breed is correct. Why have we put the needs of criminals above the needs of law abiding citizens?

The fact that Breed even posed these questions is a wonder. Perhaps we are moving toward a point where state, city, and local politicians are beginning to see the light. With luck, politicians will start fighting for taxpayers rather than continuing to cater to society’s underbelly who believe in freebies.

The troubles cities and states face are easily remedied if only we allowed police officers to do their jobs and DAs to prosecute criminals. Les Misérables teaches that there is always room for repentance and redemption. But without law there is no order, and that makes us all miserable.

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