California to Consider Bill Allowing Police to Arrest Shoplifters Instead of Issuing Citations

Lawmakers are also considering a revision of Prop. 47, which increased the threshold for misdemeanor theft from $450 to $950.

CVS items are among nearly 14,000 products recovered from a retail theft ring investigation in Glendale, Calif., on Aug. 31, 2023. Courtesy of California Highway Patrol

A bill submitted this session in the California Legislature seeks to allow police to arrest shoplifters, instead of releasing them with a citation.

Existing law allows police to arrest someone for misdemeanor shoplifting if the officer witnessed the crime, but the new legislation, Assembly Bill (AB) 1990, would allow the officer to arrest the person “if the officer has probable cause to believe that person has committed shoplifting,” according to the bill.