Sheriff Bianco blames Prop. 47 for property crimes. But why don't his deputies solve property crimes? – Press Enterprise

Sheriff Chad Bianco holds his hat as officer Lionel Murphy sings the national anthem at the Jurupa Valley Community Pro Rodeo on Friday, June 9, 2023. (Photo by Anjali Sharif-Paul, The Sun/SCNG)

Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco made a recent appearance Fox News Condemn Proposition 47.

“California, we're in a very difficult time right now when it comes to public safety, and from a law enforcement standpoint, for the most part, we can say that we can attribute most of the problems that we're having to that, right.” At least is there some sort of connection with them, with the passage of Prop 47 in 2012,” he said.

It's an argument that many Californians have undoubtedly heard many times over the last decade. But what is the truth?

First, some background information.

The measure was approved by voters in 2014, not 2012, as Bianco explained and Fox News reiterated. It reduced a handful of petty thefts and drug crimes from felonies to misdemeanors. Under the law, crimes such as shoplifting are punishable by up to six months in prison and drug possession by up to one year in prison.

The number of property crimes reported in the state actually increased in the year following passage, from 946,682 cases reported in 2014 to 1,023,828 in 2015. Since then, however, the number of reported property crimes has fallen to 902,977 in 2022, the last full figure Year for which we have national data.

There is debate as to why this is so. Maybe it's not the law itself that's driving property crime in the state. After all, property crimes are still crimes. People may no longer report property crimes to a greater extent than before. Property crimes have long been underreported nationwide for as long as records have been kept. We don't know what we can't count.

We also know that law enforcement solves a much lower proportion of crimes today compared to a decade ago, which is another point Bianco made on Fox.

“[The] The reality is that without consequences, there is no reason for anyone to change their behavior, and we need to move past this feel-good attitude that our lawmakers are now displaying in this idea that it's someone else's fault and it's not yours “Your own actions are responsible for that,” he said.