Prop 36 Viewed as a Chance to Reform Prop 47

An effort to increase punishment for drug and retail theft crimes will reform Proposition 47 if voters approve it in November.

Proposition 36, also known as the Homeless Drug Addiction and Theft Reduction Act, would restore felony charges for theft, and hold offenders accountable for sales of illicit fentanyl more strictly.

Prop 36 Has Support From California Politicians

The Democrat Mayors of San Francisco and San Jose, London Breed and Matt Mahan, support Prop 36 along with Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco.

“If you’re going to repeatedly victimize us by stealing from our property or from our retail stores, we are going to hold you accountable,” Bianco previously told Fox 11. “This is common sense.”

Prop 47 is being blamed for ‘smash and grab’ burglaries at department stores by bands of thieves. Currently, because of Proposition 47, the prosecution of thefts below $950 were downgraded from felonies to misdemeanors.

There are advantages and disadvantages to the proposed new law, according to Lauren Johnson-Norris, a criminal defense attorney in Irvine, who worries about the cost of implementing Prop 36.

“I understand the concerns of box retailers like Walmart, Home Depot and Target but I’m not sure the exorbitant cost of Prop 36 is something our courts can absorb,” Johnson-Norris told OrangeCountyLawyers.com. “We’ve also tried mass incarceration in this state and the voters have repeatedly rejected it.”

Organizers were able to secure 546,000 petition signatures, which allows the proposition to be placed on November 5th’s general election ballot.

While the Public Policy Institute of California data shows that retail theft increased statewide by 16% from 2019 to 2022, Gov. Gavin Newsom has argued that law enforcement statewide is effectively handling the trend.

Instead of increasing penalties, Johnson-Norris would like to see funding allocated to create better paying jobs, increase mental health care and to open more substance abuse treatment centers.

“Our justice system needs to treat all people fairly so that the consequences of our criminal laws stop disproportionately impacting poor people and people of color,” she said.

Prop 36 also calls for treatment plans for those who plead guilty to felony drug possessions, which could result in dismissed charges.

Some 2.9 million or 9% of Californians aged 12 and older have a substance use disorder, according to a report issued by the “Substance Use In California” report published by the California Health Care Almanac.

“If it passes, [treatment plans] are one way to mitigate against the risk of mass incarcerating people who are convicted of these crimes because we know that many people who sell drugs also use drugs,” Johnson-Norris said in an interview.

If an offender is sentenced, they would go to state prison without a judge’s discretion to sentence a defendant to probation, local time or treatment.

“Our courts have done a good job with some reforms that include mental health courts, substance abuse courts, and looking at these problems in a different way,” Johnson-Norris said. “So, I’d hate to see us turn away from that when we’re making a lot of progress.”

Prop 36 would hold defendants convicted of trafficking fentanyl accountable in the same way as dealers of cocaine, heroin or methamphetamine.

Some 80% of drug related deaths among California’s youths are deaths by Fentanyl overdose, according to the California Department of Education.

“It would treat fentanyl the same as illegal drugs while not recognizing that fentanyl is actually a lawful prescribed medication that is allowable by law,” Johnson-Norris added. “Some people may take issue with that.”