A Place for Shoplifters to Grab Some Help

Her father was gravely ill. Mother’s Day was approaching, bringing with it memories of an unhappy childhood. Linda wanted an escape.

So she drove to Bloomingdale’s, palmed an $80 glass figurine and slipped it into a shopping bag. It took only a split second, but store security saw it all. And soon, Linda was in handcuffs, headed to jail, a harsh contrast from her lifestyle in Newport Beach.

More than a year has passed since that episode, giving Linda plenty of time to reflect. As a two-time offender, Linda spent eight days in Orange County Jail. She also was sentenced to a Newport Beach therapy program that treats compulsive shoplifting in much the same way alcoholism or drug addiction is treated.

Judges in Los Angeles and Orange counties send dozens of shoplifters each year to the office of the Alternative Sentencing Programs, hoping its 12-step-style group counseling will discourage recidivism. The $400 cost is paid by the shoplifter.

Alternative Sentencing focuses on people who shoplift even though they don’t need the items they steal. It’s a category made up largely of professionals -- doctors, attorneys, real estate agents. A police officer is also among the group’s alumni.

Shoplifting has received much media attention since film star Winona Ryder was arrested last year on charges of stealing designer merchandise from Saks Fifth Avenue in Beverly Hills. Ryder, found guilty last month, is scheduled to be sentenced today. Los Angeles County prosecutors say they will recommend the Oscar-nominated actress receive 60 days of community service and undergo drug and psychiatric counseling “so her actions on Dec. 12, 2001, will not be repeated.”

Therapists at Alternative Sentencing say financially secure people steal for two reasons: a quick thrill or to give themselves a treat.

Linda said stealing made her heart race, almost as though she were on a drug. She said she’d even black out at times, as some alcoholics do.

“I’d get home, I’d see this thing in my trunk or in a sack and I’d say, ‘What is this?’ It’s like [I was in] a zone,” she said.

Linda and other shoplifters meet weekly for three months, trying to identify the triggers that lead them to steal. They share telephone numbers and call one another for support when they’re feeling vulnerable.

Near the end of the treatment program, they write to the retailers they victimized to apologize and share what they’ve learned. Some store managers write back to congratulate them for getting help.

“The times it happened I was in a very stressed out emotional state.... Almost to get a high, I’d steal something,” said Linda, who asked that her real name not be used.

Though clients at Alternative Sentencing have been convicted of a crime, therapists for the program look on the behavior as a psychological disorder that can be treated. One advantage of a group meeting is that it makes shoplifters feel less isolated, therapists say.

“They hear other people saying the same things. They feel so less alone,” said Kathy Escher, a therapist who moderates some group treatment programs. “It’s an opportunity for them to talk about secrets they haven’t been able to talk about for years.”

Linda said she and others in her group have discussed the Ryder case regularly. When the case is covered on the television news, she watches with interest.

“Every time the TV was on, I was in front of it. It reinforces that this is a sickness,” she said. “See, even celebrities could do it. She could afford it. What was she doing it for?”

While most placements are court-ordered, one recent client came on her own, saying she’d been stealing nearly every day for several months and wanted to stop before she got caught, Escher said.

Some shoplifting suspects agree to enter counseling even before they’re sentenced, a move that one Orange County judge said impacts her sentencing decisions.

Superior Court Judge Margaret Anderson said she has seen 20 to 30 defendants enter counseling and believes the group-treatment program works.

“The upper-class women I see have all the money in the world, but there’s something wrong in their lives,” Anderson said. “Once they understand why they’re doing it, they can channel that into something positive.”

Nancy Clark, the director of Alternative Sentencing, said the goal is to teach clients to recognize the triggers that cause them to steal and how to respond.

“They all have other emotional issues in their lives. If they were not treated specifically for this, they would continue doing the same thing, even if it meant going to jail,” Clark said.

Though she has completed the court-ordered treatment, Linda returns twice a month to meet with other program graduates for follow-up. Linda, a recovering alcoholic with 12 years of sobriety, said dealing with her craving to steal has been more difficult than her curbing her desire to drink, which often leads her to Alcoholics Anonymous meetings.

“There are AA meetings around the clock,” she said. “I can’t go and talk to people about [shoplifting].... If it weren’t for this program, I’d be in big trouble. I just think I’d have gone nuts. I would just think I’m a bad person, just like when I drank.”

She said she hopes anyone who compulsively steals considers Clark’s program, which treats both women and men.

“AA is not such a stigma anymore. I really believe that’s what’s going to happen with shoplifting in 10 or 15 years.”