California State Assembly District 25 recently issued the following announcement.The beginning of 2020 has been tough for many residents in the Bay Area as rashes of car break-ins caused havoc in neighborhoods and business centers. In a San Jose neighborhood, a dozen car break-ins happened in a single morning. In Fremont, police officers arrested two individuals for breaking into 30 cars. Over the past few years, smash-and-grabs have increased anywhere from 14 percent to 50 percent in Bay Area cities. Just in January, an incident involving a stolen laptop resulted in the perpetrators running over the victim, who was trying to retrieve his laptop, and killing him. These crimes are putting hard-working families into further hardship and more needs to be done to deter criminals.
As a follow-up to his $3.75 million funding allocation to local police departments to help address these crimes, Assemblymember Kansen Chu plans to introduce legislation this month to increase penalties on those committing car break-ins and property theft. Specifically, these crimes will be considered as a felony if electronic devices with personal information were stolen. Most car break-ins target electronic devices and while such devices might not reach the threshold for a felony offense, the valuable personal data should be considered when determining actual losses.
“Smash-and-grabs and stealing valuables are not just petty crimes,” said Assemblymember Chu (D-San Jose). “They cause real economic hardship and stress for many families. A broken car window can mean unexpected repair costs, lack of reliable transportation, and unplanned time off from work. On top of the damages, when electronic devices are stolen, valuable confidential and sentimental data are compromised and sometimes cannot be replaced. The Bay Area is seeing rampant disregard for people’s property and there are criminal organizations committing these crimes methodically and frequently. Increasing penalties and making these crimes a felonious offense will deter potential criminals and keep our communities safe.”
“I wish to thank Assemblymember Chu for his efforts to reduce auto burglaries in the region. The significant increases in this crime has created hardships and emotional stress for our residents. We must remain proactive to protect our community members from falling victim. Community engagement, education, and enforcement will contribute to reducing these crimes,” said Armando Corpuz, Chief of Police at the Milpitas Police Department.
“Auto burglaries have become the crime du jour in the Bay Area. While most other crimes are falling, auto burglaries have skyrocketed. Organized criminal groups have learned that auto burglaries are low risk with high reward, with little to no punishment even when caught. It’s time we corrected this lack of accountability in the current law. Assemblymember Chu has been a tireless partner to law enforcement in the fight against auto burglaries, and we are grateful for his support,” said Kimberly Petersen, Chief of Police at the Fremont Police Department.
“The theft of personal property is always traumatic to victims, but the theft of electronic devices deprives victims of memories, personal and professional data, and the impact is an emotional, as well as, physical loss. The Newark Police Department fully supports Assemblymember Kansen Chu’s legislation to deter criminals from targeting electronics and impacting hardworking people in such an invasive manner,” said Michael Carroll, Chief of Police at the Newark Police Department.
“I would like to praise Assemblymember Chu and this new bill. Increasing the penalties for auto burglaries will send a message to criminals that society has had enough of these crimes that have plagued the Bay Area for too long,” said Dan Winter, Assistant Chief of Police at the Santa Clara Police Department.
Original source can be found here.
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