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Creuzot ends prosecution policy on low-level thefts of basic necessities in Dallas County

Christopher Connelly
/
KERA News
Dallas County District Attorney John Creuzot.

Newly reelected Dallas County District Attorney John Creuzot has reversed a policy exempting people from prosecution for low-level thefts not for economic gain.

The policy had been aimed at decriminalizing poverty.

“The policy has been misrepresented and politicized, and those who have done that have created a sense of mistrust about this office,” Creuzot said in a statement.

The policy specifically exempted people from prosecution if they stole diapers, formula, or food worth between $100 and $750 except in cases where the theft was for economic gain. Creuzot announced this policy after he first won election in 2018. The DA’s office is not responsible for prosecuting thefts under $100.

Opponents soon criticized him for it, although experts said at the time that other criminal justice reforms Creuzot enacted would have more impact.

In announcing the end of the policy, Creuzot said it had neither a positive nor negative effect on crime, echoing what numbers from his office showed regarding low-level thefts. And he said the narrative around the issue has unfairly maligned poor people.

“I have come to the understanding that this policy is more aspirational than realistic and rather than helping those in need, I have watched that population, and primarily people of color, be blamed for a rise in crime,” he said.

He promised his office will continue to use discretion in deciding which crimes get prosecuted, as well as employ use pre-trial interventions and other programs to help people, if necessary.

Creuzot, a Democrat, ran in 2018 and 2022 on using the office to combat mass incarceration, particularly of people of color. He won reelection over Republican Faith Johnson earlier this month by almost 19 percentage points.

Got a tip? Email Bret Jaspers at bjaspers@kera.org. You can follow Bret on Twitter @bretjaspers.

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Bret Jaspers is a reporter for KERA. His stories have aired nationally on the BBC, NPR’s newsmagazines, and APM’s Marketplace. He collaborated on the series Cash Flows, which won a 2020 Sigma Delta Chi award for Radio Investigative Reporting. He's a member of Actors' Equity, the professional stage actors union.