States' thresholds for theft crimes vary widely: Steal $201 shoes in New Jersey and you face a felony. Steal the same sneakers in Texas, it's a misdemeanor. And as inflation rises, more acts will count as felonies.
Steal $201 shoes in New Jersey and you face a felony. Steal the same sneakers in Texas, it's a misdemeanor.Some states haven't changed their thresholds for felonies in years. Advocates are pushing them to create updated standards, arguing that outdated laws are unfairly making felons out of people who committed minor crimes.
New Jersey hasn't adjusted its felony theft threshold since 1978. New York's remains at $1,000 -- unchanged since 1986 when the Mets last won the World Series. New Mexico, one of the poorest states in the country, has a threshold of only $500.Leaving the bar for a felony unchanged for years on end is contributing to skyrocketing prison populations, which disproportionately affect communities of color, Campaign Zero executive director DeRay Mckesson told Axios.
Since 2000, more than two dozen states have raised the value of stolen money or goods above which prosecutors may charge theft offenses as felonies, rather than misdemeanors, aDemocratic New Mexico state Rep. Antonio "Moe" Maestas, a criminal justice reform advocate, said it's hard for state lawmakers to raise the threshold for theft because they will be seen as lowering penalties for crimes.
"Police groups and retailers will oppose it. For thresholds to be raised, it has to come as part of a larger package of reforms."
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