SPRINGFIELD — As stores gear up to accommodate an influx of shoppers this holiday season, one common fear remains on retailers’ minds: theft.
While thievery may see a spike this time of year, the Springfield Police Department has been working to combat the problem for some time, unveiling updates at a recent roundtable.
Springfield Justice Center was abuzz on Nov. 19 with community leaders, business owners, and Lane County citizens poised to receive a brief on public safety efforts from Andrew Shearer, SPD Chief of Police, and his team.
Held in partnership with the Springfield Chamber of Commerce, the Safe Streets, Strong Businesses roundtable provided attendees with a comprehensive look at SPD’s commitment to tackling retail theft and utilizing local partnerships. It also unveiled new measures designed to promote crime control in the area.
Alongside Chief Shearer, the evening’s panel included Lt. Justin Myers, Operations Division Commander; Lily Wick, crime analyst; and Sgt. Kyle Potter oversees SPD’s Crime Reduction Unit and spearheads retail theft mitigation efforts.
In 2023, at the request of three young officers, the CRU (Crime Reduction Unit) task force was formed, dedicated to tackling shoplifting in the area. Jerry’s Home Improvement’s loss prevention team approached SPD with word of significant financial depletion due to thievery.
Potter shared that the company lost “anywhere from $1 million to $2 million a year.” This led CRU to run its first mission.
Officers were undercover inside and outside the store for several hours, leading to multiple arrests.
“One guy was even up to $1,000 worth of tools (and) had some fake receipts. He was printing the receipts right out of his car,” Potter said.
After a media release detailing the mission went public, businesses such as Fred Meyer, Duluth Trading Company, and Oregon Sports contacted CRU for assistance.
Since then, a $500,000 grant awarded by the Oregon Criminal Justice Commission’s 2023-2025 Organized Retail Theft Grant Program has continued to support CRU’s efforts.
Wick shared that the CRU team has completed 25 missions, 18 of which have been completed since receiving the grant.
“We’ve arrested 183 people and recovered almost $30,000 worth of stolen property,” Wick said.
This does not include the acquisition of $200,000 worth of stolen Lego recovered by CRU in July when an investigation revealed that Brick Builders in Eugene was purchasing shoplifted, unopened Lego sets and selling them to customers.
According to the store’s statistics, the dollar amount of stolen property at Jerry’s is “down nearly 50%,” thanks to CRU’s efforts.
Additionally, according to SPD data, “nearly 40% of stolen property (money value) was recovered in 2024 compared with 20% in 2023. ”
Midway through the event, the conversation pivoted to discussing updated procedures for navigating drug use among the area’s unhoused population post–Measure 110.
In mid-October, the county unveiled a deflection program to assist individuals facing drug addiction.
Under this program, when officers encounter an individual who has committed a crime (including, but not limited to, possession of drugs, trespass, or disorderly conduct), they can redirect the individual to a peer navigator who will lead them to treatment.
“It’s not just, ‘Here, call this number tomorrow and follow through on your own. (With) the peer navigator model, there’s a number we call. These peer navigators have lived experience in all cases here locally, where they’ve been in that person’s shoes,” Myers said. “They know what it’s like. They know what it takes to get out of that life. They respond to the scene, and there’s a warm handoff between our officer and this peer navigator that then guides them into the immediate services they may need.”
From there, the appointed peer navigator serves as an informal case manager, ensuring the individual they’re assigned to is progressing in their treatment plan.
Crimes committed by the individual are still written up and held at the district attorney’s office, but they’re not filed if the individual continues to improve.
Myers shared that there have been “27 deflections county-wide referred to the program” since its Oct. 18 start date. Five have failed out of the program, but the four individuals referred by SPD remain actively engaged.
Determining the program’s success rate will remain ongoing as it just passed the one-month mark.
