SHOPLIFTING AND BROKEN WINDOWS

I remember this case.  Around that time like all other magistrates courts we were experiencing a noticeable rise in shoplifting cases.  Subsequent to the "banana" case and others similar shoplifting became a summary only matter. Orders came via the Deputy Justices Clerk that a "new" word was to enter our lexicon when consideration of sentences for those convicted was being discussed; propensity. Irrespective of the small value of the theft from a shop the "p" word was to figure insofar as protection of the public [shopkeepers] was concerned.  That allowed when appropriate six months immediate custody for e.g. stealing an apple from Tesco.  And then a decade ago the coalition government classified stolen items valued at less than £200 as "low value shoplifting".  From that decision a steady increase in the crime of shop theft has taken place. 

The situation now is that shoplifting is a "no lose" activity for criminals because a severely undermanned police force has not got the resources or the will to pursue those who are having a free criminal ride.  The lowest form of punishment for theft under £100 is a fixed penalty notice.  In the year to March 431 such notices were handed out. Many constabularies didn`t hand out a single FPN.  A decade ago 19,419 were issued.  Ten years ago 16,281 shoplifters were cautioned. The most recent figures show 2,077 were issued. Ten years ago when I was still active my court and others convicted 71,998 shoplifters but by the last year where statistics are available  that number had fallen to 28,955.   The latest numbers compiled by police forces indicate that in the year to March there were 443,995 shoplifting occurrences reported.  The number unreported is...........unreported. The British Retail Consortium estimated that there were over 16 million episodes of customer theft in 2023-2024.  

The Broken Windows Theory of Criminology suggests that visible signs of disorder and neglect such as broken windows or graffiti can encourage further disorder and criminal behaviour. The theory states that by stamping out small crimes (such as vandalism or being drunk and disorderly) the signal is sent that no criminal behaviour of any kind will be tolerated.  This has to be considered alongside the view that the theory oversimplifies the causes of crime by focusing primarily on visible signs of disorder insofar as it neglects underlying social and economic factors such as poverty, unemployment and lack of education which are known to be important contributors to criminal behaviour.

Undoubtedly there will be many at Petty France at this very moment trying to formulate responses to the above situation and others more serious with inadequate resources to do so. The coalition and successive Tory administrations failed miserably.  I would not want to wager a single penny that the current lot will do any better.  

ADDENDUM 6th November 2024

Today`s issue of Law Society Gazette has had some interesting editorial and comment on this topic