In The Spotlight - Sacramento County's top elected law enforcement officials gain national attention

In the last couple of days, Sacramento has gained national exposure. Unfortunately for the chamber of commerce types, the spotlight has not cast the city and region in the most favorable light.

Sacramento County's top two elected law enforcement officials have gained national exposure on issues not only confronting the region but California as well. 

Over the weekend, first-term Sacramento County Sheriff Jim Cooper made a splash by calling out mass retailer Target for not cooperating in a crackdown on retail shoplifting. Cooper went to X and called out the Minneapolis-based retailer Target for not cooperating in an in-store operation.

I can’t make this stuff up. Recently, we tried to help Target. Our Property Crimes detectives and sergeant were contacted numerous times by Target to help them with shoplifters, mostly who were known transients. We coordinated with them and set up an operation with detectives and… pic.twitter.com/2TJCXApGMs

— Jim Cooper (@SheriffJCooper) November 9, 2023

Cooper also aimed at the California Retailer Association while praising the cooperation of Safeway grocery stores.  

Rachel, I’ve been trying to work with your organization long before you were even there. We’ve talked countless times over the past several years to try and work together to fix the issue of retail theft caused by Prop 47. Unfortunately, my efforts with you and CRA have gotten… pic.twitter.com/8c2zC9jE45

— Jim Cooper (@SheriffJCooper) November 10, 2023

KUDOS to Safeway and the California Grocers Association (CGA) for continuing to be active partners in the fight against retail theft.

Safeway’s Organized Retail Theft Management team recently reached out to Sheriff’s Property Crimes detectives regarding ongoing theft issues at a… pic.twitter.com/fw3inHOVPM

— Jim Cooper (@SheriffJCooper) November 12, 2023

All of this local publicity about Cooper's rails against retailers has not gone unnoticed. Today, the New York Post had a story on Cooper's criticisms. 

Interestingly, today, Sacramento County's other top-elected law enforcement officer, Sacramento County District Attorney Thien Ho, also in his first term, was interviewed on public radio station WBUR's Here and Now program, which is nationally distributed on National Public Radio (watch video for Ho's interview). Ho discussed his controversial lawsuit against the city of Sacramento for what the district attorney has said is their failure to address the fast-growing homeless population. 

How much this national exposure will go to solve homelessness in the Sacramento region, much less the catalysts for the situation and the rash of statewide retail theft, remains to be seen. With several critical local elections in Sacramento, most notably the selection of a new mayor, Cooper, and Ho have started framing significant regional and statewide issues in 2024.  

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