The Economy's Impact On Crime
CBS
Transcript
This is the camera that actually picked up the good images of her. In suburban Dallas, Sims White was on the lookout for a Grinch determined to steal his Christmas. A package left on his porch by the delivery man. And he got it all on tape. She just took advantage of a situation. She saw a box on the porch and decided she'd pick it up. And it's not just snatching presents from porches. There are car thefts on home burglaries. And while holiday crime may be as common as Christmas trees, this year's economic downturn appears to be driving the numbers way up. In Northern California, police caught another porch thief on tape. This year, almost 50% of the nation's police departments report an increase in burglaries. More than 40% see an increase in thefts. In Fairlaw, New Jersey, Chief Eric Rose's officers helped the county prosecutor haul in a ring accused of burglarizing 11 homes in northern New Jerseyy's wealthiest county. He says the season and the economy will keep police busy. There are people that may have jobs and when they have jobs aren't predisposed towards crime, but when they don't have jobs, nothing justifies crime, but they might decide that's an alternative. For retailers, it means more shoplifterss hurting the bottom line. Now we're seeing a rocket trajectory and it's it's increasing not just in Main Street or on Wall Street. It's increasing all across America. Stealing in stores is up 10 to 20%. In fact, one in 11 Americans shoplift costing merchants $35 million a day. On Staten Island, New York, a novel counterattack. Pictures of frequent shoplifterss posted on video screens for everyone to see. Randall Kingston, CBS News, Fairlon, New Jersey.