After a push from big retailers and law enforcement, a new Oklahoma law will give the state Attorney General the power to prosecute crime rings that steal retail goods to sell online for profit. But a provision to lower the dollar amount to charge shoplifters with a felony didn't survive.
One of the bill's authors, Rep. John George, R-Newalla, said he wants to try to lower the bar for a felony again in a future legislative session. He said he would consider proposing a state question to roll back criminal justice reforms on felony charges that Oklahoma voters approved nearly a decade ago.
"I'm okay with being smart on crime, I just don't want to go too far," George said.
George's based on recommendations from a state task force on organized retail crime. Those with seats on the task force include the , the , the , the and the – a group that represents big box retailers including Walmart and Target. The task force from the retail chains Lowe's, OnCue and Reasor's.
The task force recommended that Oklahoma create a new law to make organized retail theft a crime.
A previous version of the legislation in 2024 would have rolled back criminal justice reforms Oklahoma voters approved in 2016 as part of State Question 780. The voter-led reforms made many non-violent crimes misdemeanors, in an effort to shrink Oklahoma's high prison population. But the 2024 bill didn't make it out of committee.
Critics worried the bill would impose harsh penalties on low-level shoplifters.
Sen. Darrell Weaver, R-Moore, the Senate author of the bill, amended the legislation to remove the provision.
"My desire is that this is not about a young person shoplifting and going in and stealing a Snickers bar and throwing the book at them for life, I'm opposed to that," Weaver said.
Michael Olson, policy counsel for , which campaigned for State Question 780, applauded the decision to remove the lower felony threshold from the legislation. The group opposes the creation of new felonies.
"When you work that way, you're entrapping individuals that may not be engaging in organized retail theft at all and are just stealing over $500," Olson said.
Under the new law, which takes effect in November, shoplifters can be prosecuted with organized retail crime if at least two aggravating circumstances are present including:
- Two or more people are involved
- Tools like tag cutters, foil-lined bags, weapons or other items that help avoid detection are used
- Those involved use fire escapes, employee exists or other non-public exits
- Anti-shoplifting or inventory control devices are removed, destroyed or deactivated
- Someone possesses or purchases the stolen items with the knowledge that they were stolen
- A getaway driver or a rented or stolen vehicle is used
- A fraudulent, paper or obstructed license plate is used
Maximum penalties range from five to eight years in prison, depending on the value of the stolen merchandise. Anyone convicted of organized retail theft must pay restitution to the retailer where the merchandise was stolen.
The Oklahoma Attorney General's office plans to spend about $1.1 million to hire six staffers to investigate and prosecute retail crime under the new law.
Retail industry groups have advocated for states to enact harsher penalties for organized retail crime in recent years. At least 30 states have passed laws targeting organized retail crime, according to the .
In March, accused of stealing thousands of dollars in merchandise from seven stores. In 2024, accused of stealing about $400,000 in Lego sets from multiple states, including Oklahoma. In 2022, for leading an organized retail theft group that lost retailers over $10 million total.
Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond joined 37 state attorneys general who in February asking in support of to create an organized retail crime center at a federal level.
Oklahoma businesses lost over $662 million in stolen goods with an estimated loss of over $97 million in tax revenue in 2021, the state task force said in a December 2024 report, citing numbers from the But some retail analysts and researchers have said the industry has exaggerated the extent
There is no comprehensive data on the impact of organized retail theft, a , due to the lack of a national database.
This article first appeared on The Frontier and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
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