A bipartisan group of legislators unveiled a package last week to address the fentanyl crisis and retail crime.
Dubbed “Working Together for a Safer California,” the legislative package includes more than a dozen bills meant to increase access to drug treatment, add more tools for law enforcement to capture criminals and prosecute them, improve drug testing and treatment for people in the criminal justice system and more.
Related: Retail theft outrage over brazen smash-and-grabs, shoplifting sprees, could bring California crackdown
“This plan isn’t about catchy soundbites on fentanyl and crime — it’s about a sound approach to keeping our communities safe and improving the quality of life here in the Golden State,” said Senate President Pro Tem Mike McGuire, D-North Coast.
“Unlike ever before, Democrats and Republicans are uniting to move the Senate’s bipartisan Safer California Plan forward, which will deploy desperately needed resources into communities to help combat the fentanyl epidemic and blunt the rising tide of theft and crime,” he said. “We’re working overtime to get this done.”
The legislative Problem Solvers Caucus unveiled its retail theft package last week, which included a bill from Assemblymember Laurie Davies, R-Laguna Niguel, establishing a new felony offense for those who coerce minors into committing theft-related crimes.
Fentanyl legislation has not had the easiest time passing out of the California Legislature in recent years — public safety committees in both chambers were considered a “cemetery” for bills that create new crimes, enhance existing penalties or result in more incarceration, veteran Sacramento lobbyist Chris Micheli said last year during a…
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