Tampa Bay Division: Shoplifting Increased Violence

According to the National Retail Federation survey shoplifting violence has increased from 13% all all detentions in 2011 to 18% in 2013. Some people believe it is due to professional shoplifters simply having more to loose when detained to an overall lack of respect for authority in general. We have witnessed an increase in the sense of entitlement across the board from petty thefts to bank bailouts a few years ago. The other consideration is the cost of litigation should an altercation cause an injury either real or imagined. The civil liability is often far greater than the loss of goods.