Police to boost patrols to stave off thefts from vehicles

A rash of vehicle burglaries in north Laguna has the attention of the Laguna Beach Police Department, which plans to boost patrols in the area, Sgt. Tim Kleiser said last week.

Police have documented 30 break-ins from January 2014 through February 2015, a majority of them involving smashed windows. Crimes have occurred along Cliff Drive in the general area where the road meets La Brea and Chiquita streets, Kleiser said.

Stolen items include purses, wallets, jewelry, laptops and cellphones from a variety of vehicle types at all times of the day. Kleiser notes that most of the vehicles were parked on streets.

“We’ve seen them from 10 a.m. all the way to midnight,” Kleiser said.

Police would not characterize the number as an increase from previous years, but Kleiser said this is the most he has seen in that area since he started with the city in 2003.

“Either somebody knows the area or lives in the area,” Kleiser said, “but there’s no hard evidence that leads me to think that it’s the same person or group.

“So far no witnesses have seen or heard anything.”

The greatest number of reported thefts in one month has been four, occurring both in January and February of this year. Police have no indication that the thief or thieves are trying to steal the cars they break into, Kleiser said.

Police have some leads. Other law enforcement agencies have contacted Laguna after apprehending suspects on unrelated charges and finding stolen items, said Kleiser, who did not identify the specific agencies.

Law enforcement officials and prosecutors statewide are adjusting to sentencing changes with Proposition 47. The ballot initiative, which went into effect Jan. 1 after California voters approved it in November, reclassifies certain drug and property crimes as misdemeanors instead of felonies. One of the law’s intended outcomes is reducing jail populations.

Whether there is any link between the new legislation and a person’s likelihood of breaking a law is debatable.

Gary Painter, director of social policy at USC’s Sol Price Center for Social Innovation, said it’s difficult to make any causal connection between a law such as Proposition 47 and its sentences and a person’s likelihood of committing a crime.

“It’s wise of law enforcement not to point to a policy to figure out whether there has been a change,” Painter said. “In general, we’ve found people aren’t sensitive to these kinds of cutoffs in making a decision to commit one kind of crime versus another.”

Kleiser said that when he worked patrol, he would look for warning signs that could invite thieves.

“If I saw someone’s garage door open, I would contact the homeowner, saying, ‘You didn’t close your garage door,’” he said.