BELGRADE — A Belgrade woman was arrested last weekend, accused of stealing more than $4,000 worth of goods from the Albertsons in Belgrade over the course of more than 40 separate incidents.
So, is retail theft on the rise?
“Theft has always been wrong,” said Brad Griffin, President of the Montana Retail Association.
Griffin said that since 2017, when the Montana Legislature passed House Bill 133, which significantly reduced penalties for misdemeanor theft, shoplifting has increased.
House Bill 133 eliminated jail time and allowed fines of up to $500 for first-time offenders.
“We did see a rise in theft from that point forward,” Griffin said.
Montana Retail Theft Rises: New Laws Aim to Deter Shoplifters
Under that bill, offenders could steal up to $1,500 without facing jail time.
“Predictably, we saw an increase in theft because you could steal up to fifteen hundred dollars with impunity,” he added.
A few months ago, Senate Bill 19 became law. Now, criminals can expect up to six months in jail or a fine of $1,500 for their first and second offenses.
“I think it’s come as a big surprise to a lot of habitual criminals who never expected that,” Griffin said.
Although Brad said it's too early to measure whether or not Senate Bill 19 has helped improve retail theft, he noted that retailers are already stepping up prevention efforts:
“Asset protection people are being more present in their stores, looking for suspicious behavior.”
Belgrade Police Chief Dustin Lensing said he hasn't noticed a spike in theft related to the temporary loss of federal benefits during the recent government shutdown.
“I think nationwide, there’s kind of been an increasing trend in retail theft,” Lensing said. “Here locally, with an increasing population, more businesses, and more people, we’ll always see an uptick.”
Lensing emphasized that while public awareness is helpful, safety should always come first, and witnesses or retail employees should not approach criminals.
“We always just ask people to be a really good witness, so when we do show up, they can give us the information we need to solve the case.”
