Governor Hochul touts success in cracking down on organized retail theft across New York
Authorities in New York are touting success in cracking down on organized retail theft.
Though this issue has been more prominent in New York City, Governor Kathy Hochul says it has been an issue statewide as well.
During a recent press conference, the Governor highlighted that retail theft statewide has declined 5%. Meanwhile, data suggests that New York City has had a 12% year over year decline.
New York State started cracking down on organized retail theft following a spike of such criminal activity in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. “While today’s numbers represent significant progress in the fight against retail theft, we will not back down,” the Governor said.
“I remain committed to supporting our businesses and their workers to restore a sense of security and peace of mind for shoppers and store owners alike.”
Over $40 million has been invested into this crackdown to support law enforcement; strengthen laws to hold perpetrators accountable and adding new protections for frontline retail workers.
Crime data shows a significant spike in retail theft crimes immediately following the pandemic in 2022 as business operations began returning to normal. To combat this spike, as part of the FY2025 State Budget, Governor Hochul signed into law initiatives to deter crime and protect businesses. These included:
- Bolstering criminal penalties for anyone who assaults a retail worker by elevating it from a misdemeanor to felony. Any person who causes physical injury to a retail worker performing their job will be subject to this new felony.
- Allowing prosecutors to combine the value of stolen goods when they file larceny charges and allowing retail goods from different stores to be aggregated for the purposes of reaching a higher larceny threshold when stolen under the same criminal scheme.
- Making it illegal to foster the sale of stolen goods to go after third-party sellers. A person will be found guilty if they use any website or physical location to sell stolen goods.
- $40.2 million for dedicated Retail Theft Teams within State Police, District Attorneys’ offices and local law enforcement, including 100 New York State Police personnel dedicated to fighting organized retail theft.
- $5 million allocated to help alleviate the burden on small businesses for additional security measures. Funding provides a $3,000 tax credit for any small businesses who spend the threshold amount of money on retail theft prevention measures.
Image via the office of New York Governor Kathy Hochul.
