SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – In 2024, CA voters overwhelmingly passed Proposition 36, which was designed to help combat issues surrounding theft and drug-related crimes. One of the changes in Prop 36 added a law that allowed charging individuals for a felony if they commit a theft and have two or more prior theft convictions.

On January 11, 2025, SLTPD officers responded to Ross for a shoplifting that just occurred. The suspect fled before officers arrived, but officers used security video to identify the suspect. Officers later located the suspect, a 37-year-old South Lake Tahoe resident, and detained him. Officers learned the suspect had several prior convictions for theft. They arrested him for felony theft under the new law and booked him in jail. They also recovered the stolen items and returned them to Ross.

On January 14, 2025, SLTPD officers responded to the Powder House for a shoplifting that just occurred. The suspect fled before they got there, but the store provided security video of the theft. One of the police department’s Community Service Officers (CSOs) saw the suspect on Lake Tahoe Blvd. He relayed the information to patrol officers, who detained the suspect, a 41-year-old South Lake Tahoe resident. Officers learned the suspect had several prior convictions for theft. They arrested him for felony theft under the new law. While searching the suspect, they recovered the stolen items from Powder House. They also located stolen items from Whole Foods. As such, he was booked on a second count of felony theft.