Spokane County, Spokane police set to launch program aimed at organized retail crime
Spokane police and county prosecutors may soon receive some reinforcements in combating retail crime.
After receiving a roughly $1 million state grant, the Washington Organized Retail Crime Theft Association is prepped to pour nearly $300,000 into regional enforcement patrols, data collection, diversion and prosecution efforts.
Dan Floyd, a spokesman for the association, said the impending partnership with the Spokane Police Department and the Spokane County Prosecutor’s Office is one of three pilot programs throughout the state. One in King County is already off the ground, and the program will launch in Snohomish County next week, Floyd said.
The paperwork for Spokane County’s program likely will begin in the next two weeks, Floyd said.
Floyd said the pilot programs will increase communication and coordination between shop owners, law enforcement and county prosecutors, in an effort to combat the estimated $3 billion the statewide retail industry loses to theft each year, as reported by the Tacoma News Tribune.
Floyd said the focus will be on organized retail crime, not petty shoplifting.
Spokane police Capt. Tracie Meidl said organized retail crime could include repeat offenders, individuals working in groups to steal and sell stolen goods or those targeting multiple stores or racking up troves of expensive stolen goods.
“This is not to address the person stealing bubble gum or a sandwich,” Floyd said. “The goal of this is to address the highest utilizers, the most frequent offenders, the most violent offenders, and those who are working in conjunction with others to put high -value items on the resale market.”
The Spokane Police Department is set to receive $90,000, which Meidl said will be used to support emphasis patrols in hot -spot areas, in addition to coordinated efforts with particular businesses. She identified the downtown shopping core, the NorthTown Mall area and the shops along U.S. Highway 2 north of town.
“Our police department, our investigators already have a very good working relationship with most of our business community,” Meidl said. “And we’ve had these kind of coordinated efforts going on for a while already, so this grant will just improve the coordinated efforts and expand what we were already doing.”
Around $200,000 is slated to be provided to the prosecutor’s office to assist them in recovering damages, holding offenders accountable and restitution, according to county records.
While prosecution of higher risk and repeat offenders will be a major aspect of the office’s responsibilities, getting those lesser risk offenders to change their ways will be another, said Katie McNulty, assistant chief deputy prosecutor.
Diversion and therapeutic court alternatives will be utilized when possible, as emphasized in the grant agreement, she said.
“Spokane County already has a wonderful diversion program in place, which is one of the things that kind of enabled us to take part in this grant,” McNulty said.
Like the police department, McNulty said much of the grant’s work falls in line with efforts already underway at the prosecutor’s office.
“I see it being more support for our office and a way for us to interact with law enforcement and the organized retail theft association to make sure that we’re having open communication and that we’re kind of dealing with these cases in a way that makes sense,” McNulty said. “Hopefully we’re bringing accountability to the offenders, and justice to the community and to the business folks who are being affected by this type of crime.”
Floyd said the association intends to ask the state Legislature during the upcoming legislative session for additional funding to grow it to other locales in the future.
McNulty expects the program to have meaningful impacts for not just business owners but also the broader community. While she acknowledges some may not realize it, property crimes can have a lot of “collateral consequences,” like discouraging community members from visiting certain areas, or affecting mom and pop shops more severely than big box stores.
She said when organized retail theft goes on unchecked, it impedes individuals from wanting to live or do business in Spokane. McNulty said.
“We want to make sure that we’re doing our part to hold these type of offenders accountable and make it a place that people feel confident and safe doing business,” McNulty said.