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US News

Gavin Newsom recalls how Target clerk blamed him for California retail theft — before realizing who he was

By
David Propper
Published Jan. 31, 2024, 11:42 p.m. ET

Gavin Newsom revealed Wednesday that he once witnessed a shoplifter steal from Target without any interference from workers, one of whom blamed the California governor for emboldened criminals in the state before she realized who he actually was.

The Golden State leader recalled the awkward interaction at the start of a Zoom forum about a mental health proposition he’s backing, and as California continues to deal with a retail theft crisis, the Mercury News reported.

Newsom said he was on the Target checkout line when he and a store worker saw the thief waltz out of the store with items he didn’t pay for, according to footage posted online.

“I said, ‘why didn’t you stop him,’” Newsom said. “She goes, ‘oh, the governor.’ Swear to God, true story on my mom’s grave. ‘The governor lowered the threshold, there’s no accountability.’ I said that’s just not true.”

Newsom then said he told the clerk, who still apparently didn’t know who he was, that California’s Prop. 47 makes it a felony for property thefts totaling $950 or higher – the 10th toughest in the nation.   

Newsom made the remarks Wednesday.
Newsom made the remarks Wednesday.

“No one gives a damn about that,” he said, noting the clerk still blamed the governor.

“And then she goes – she looks at me twice and then she freaks out – she calls everyone over, wants to take photos,” Newsom said – a request he apparently turned down.

“I’m like, ‘no we’re not taking a photo, we’re having a conversation, where’s your manager? How are you blaming the governor?’” he said. “And it was $380 later, and I was like ‘Why am I spending $380, everyone else can walk the hell right out?’”

The incident happened at a Sacramento-area Target, according to the governor’s office — though it’s unclear when it occurred.

Target and other stores have struggled with shoplifting in the state.
Target and other stores have struggled with shoplifting in the state. ZUMAPRESS.com

Newsom has led California since 2019. Prop 47, which lowered drug and property crime penalties, was signed into law in 2014, The San Francisco Standard reported.

California Republicans cheered the unnamed clerk.

“Shoutout to this store clerk for saying to the governor’s face what every Californian has wanted to say: that he and his radical @CA_Dem buddies are to blame for CA’s surging crime,” state GOP chair Jessica Millan Patterson in a tweet.

“Sadly, Newsom still didn’t seem to take the hint,”

The Democrat unveiled various measures meant to tackle out-of-control retail theft recently, but won’t make changes to Prop 47, the Mercury News reported. 

The new legislation calls on the state to expand criminal penalties while giving authorities greater tools in its fight against property theft, his office said in a statement Wednesday night.

Newsom has invested $1.1 billion in public safety since he took office, with a focus on taking on organized retail crime, his office added.