Only serious punishment will deter shoplifters
If they are able to do so they will carry on stealing, targeting more shops. The obvious remedy is to ensure that prolific shoplifters are caught and punished, both to take them out of circulation and to demonstrate the consequences of their actions. It is called deterrence and our criminal justice system is supposedly founded on its nostrums.
But that can no longer be said. Ministry of Justice (MoJ) figures show that nearly six in 10 thieves with at least 15 previous offences avoided prison last year, the highest proportion since records began more than a decade ago.
One offender with 315 previous convictions caught stealing a £495 designer handbag from Fenwicks store in Newcastle was given a 'last chance' by a court, despite breaching a suspended jail sentence and community order.
People will be astonished to discover just how many crimes need to be carried out before a jail term is handed down. It has become even less likely that these crooks will be sent to prison given the backlog in court hearings and the overflowing prisons.
The police are often blamed for refusing to investigate shoplifting or even burglaries. But they have a point if the criminals they apprehend are simply sent packing with a rap on the knuckles. Katy Bourne, Sussex's police and crime commissioner, said last week that the current system is madness. Most people would agree with her.
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