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SUGGESTED VIDEO ;Newsom signs retail theft bill
The bill brings back tougher penalties for smash and grab robberies.
SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY, Calif. - More than two dozen people were arrested and over $16,000 in stolen property recovered as part of a retail theft bust in San Bernardino County.
The arrests were made over a two-week period between Sept. 26 and Oct. 11 and involved several agencies including the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department, the San Bernardino Police Department, the California Highway Patrol, and Homeland Security Investigations.
Of the 26 arrests, six were felony arrests and 20 were misdemeanor arrests, officials said.
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Operation SMASH and Grab focuses efforts on the Rancho Cucamonga, Apple Valley, Hesperia, Victorville, and Chino Hills shopping districts to combat the rise in retail thefts.
Last week, authorities in Ventura County arrested 15 people in connection with retail thefts in Camarillo.
Proposition 36 aims to implement harsher penalties for theft and drug trafficking in a state that’s earned a reputation for being "soft on crime." If passed, some of these crimes that were previously classified as misdemeanors would be recategorized as felonies, reversing Prop 47 which voters passed in 2014.
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According to the state, the theft of items worth $950 or less is generally a misdemeanor, but Prop 36 would make the crime a felony if the person has two or more past convictions for theft crimes.