Thurs., Dec 15, 1977 (Sec. 2) SANDY (Ore.) POST - 9
Shoplifting is stealing,
Boring students toid
BORING—I t ’s a problem
that touches the nooks and
crannies of rural Oregon as
much as the metropolitan and
suburban areas.
Annually, it amounts to about
$75 m illion in losses to Oregon
businesses But, as is often the
custom, the businesses pass on
the loss to the consumer.
TTie nice word for it is
“ shoplifting." But students at
the middle school here found
out some of the hard facts about
the crime.
“ S h op lifting
is
re a lly
stealing,” Vicky Smith of the
STEM program told the fifth
and sixth graders gathered in
thegym.
STEM is the acronym for
Shoplifting Takes Everybody’s
Money, a national organization said.
with its Oregon headquarters in
"The customers do end up
Portland.
paying for someone else’s
"Shoplifting is a crim e,”
shoplifting and internal theft.”
Smith continued.
Smith said that 20 cents on
"Shoplifting is against the every dollar spent is to cover
law.
the losses resu ltin g from
"B ut you already know that. shoplifting
I ’m not here to tell you the
" I t ’s outrageous,” she told
difference between right and the students’ " I t doesn’t seem
w ro n g .” What Sm ith did fa ir that you have to pay for
hammer home to the students someone’s elses shoplifting. ”
is that shoplifting can net them
During the question and
a crim inal record, sessions answer
session,
Sm ith
with juvenile counselors and, in dismissed some of the myths
severe cases, a trip to the and
misconceptions
the
juvenile detention home.
youngsters
had
about
"Because of the $75 million s h o p liftin g . Among other
loss that Oregon stores took last things, she said:
year through shoplifting and —Parents are always notified
internal theft, the stores have
by the storeownei when a
to raise their prices,” Smith
juvenile shoplifts. If the
police are called in, they
must fill out an arrest form,
which is entered in the of
fender's record. True, she
said, the record of juveniles
is confidential, but it can be
opened through judicial
process.
And ju ve n ile
records are not expunged
when the youthful offender
turns 18, although a clean
record and request to do so
can have positive results.
—A person need not steal to be
convicted of shoplifting. If
with a friend and he or she
steals with another person’s
knowledge, you are con
sidered an accessory to the
crime and equally guilty.
—Persons should not try to
s in g le - h a n d e d ly s to p
someone they see shoplif
ting, but should contact the
store manager or detective.
—A person need not remove
merchandise from a store to
be convicted of shoplifting.
I f he or she conceals
property with the intent to
steal it, it is also a crime.
—Changing price tags on
merchandise also is con
sidered shoplifting under
Oregon law and carries with
it the same penalties.
—Juveniles caught shoplifting
can be released in the
custody of their parents,
taken to juvenile officers or
turned over to counselors.
When a police officer is
called, an arrest form is
filled out. In all cases,
parents or guardians are
notified.
Smith said the contention of
many youths that they shoplift
because of need is not true.
“ Less than 5 percent, of all
shoplifters steal because they
are in need. The crim e of
shoplifting is not a lower class
crime. It is mostly upper
middle class and middle class
kids who take things they have
no need fo r.”
Smith said there are many
excuses people use to shoplift.
One of the most frequently
heard from adolescents is peer
group pressure.
“ Cine of the main reasons for
kids shoplifting is the ‘I dare
you to do it’ attitude,” Smith
said. One group she talked with
at another school told of a local
club that required potential
members to steal something as
part of initiation.
Smith is available to talk with
other groups about shoplifting
and the STEM program. She
can be contacted at 226-8855.
VICKV SMITH of the Shoplifting Takes Everybody«
Money (STEM) program outlined the hazards of the
crime to youngsters at the Boring Middle School last
week.
Boring starts
Kiwanis Club
BO RING—A
Dec.
7
organizational meeting has led
to the formation of a Kiwanis
Club here, but eight more
members are needed before the
group can be o ffic ia lly
recognized by the parent group.
Rex Brittle, one of the
organizers of the Boring effort,
said 12 members were signed at
the initial session and that 20
are needed before the club can
apply for a charter.
The Kiwaniians meet each
Thursday at the Mountain View
Golf Course in Boring for a
noon luncheon.
B rittle said
programs with guest speakers
w ill begin once the group has a
charter.
Interested persons should
attend the noon luncheon or
contact B rittle at 668-5501 or
Bill Roblin, 288-3024.
TV
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TV & RADIO
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F e a tu rin g
Antenna
Installations
Mistake could lead to flaming home
bv D . C. C o o p e r
C lackam as C o u n ty
Welcome back.
We are interrupting our
analysis of electric rates to
respond to a mistake which has
been brought to our attention.
Several weeks ago, in an
article covering various ways
of performing home energy
audits, we made a rather un
fortunate suggestion. True, we
had the best of intentions and
were only repeating in
fo rm a tio n
gleaned
from
another, h ig h ly reputable
source.
Nevertheless, we made a boo-
boo.
B rie fly ,
this
was the
situation. We were discussing
methods for determining air
leakage around windows and
doors, the better to lim it the
loss from buildings.
Drafts
play a substantial role in the
rising cost of heating homes.
To properly weatherize any
s tru c tu re d ra fts m ust be
e lim in a ted
and
so
we
paraphrased the directions of a
Boy Scout handout entitled
"Home Energy Quiz.”
It read like this: "To check
for drafts, hold a flame (candle
or match) about 1 inch from
where windows and doors meet
their frames.
If the flame
doesn't move, there is no draft
around your windows. .” In our
colum n
we
sim p ly
s a id ,“ ...leaks
are
easily
detectable with a lighted candle
held close to the suspected
spot...”
While it is true that this
method w ill ferret out those
pesky leaks around walls and
doors, it is also true that it can
result in a fire that might very
well • consume your entire
house.
At the suggestion of local
office of Portland General
E lectric (a company that
follow s
this
column
religiously), we are printing a
retraction of that dubious piece
of advice. Rather than risk a
costly fire, PGE suggests
energy conscious homeowners
test their walls and doors with
their hands held close to the
Next week we w ill continue
suspected crack. Moistening with a closer look at the electric
them might help.
crisis.
r
SERVICE
WITH
SINCERITY
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Covered Parking W alkw ays
cAutumn Chapel!
2010 N.E. Division
Gresham, 667-2800
Across from Golf Course
Jobs open
A pplications
fo r
ap
p ro x im a te ly 20 seasonal-
summer jobs on the Bureau of
Land Management’s Salem
District w ill be accepted until
Jan. 15.
The Salem D istrict w ill be
h irin g
recreation
aides,
forestry aides and engineering
and surveying aides.
The positions are located at
the Wildwood Recreation Site
near Sandy, Fishermen’s Bend
near M ill City, Alsea Falls
Recreation Site near Alsea and
at the district office in Salem.
The normal season of work for
seasonals varies from April 1 to
mid-May into September.
A prelim inary selection of
rates (same as weekend rates) applicants w ill be made in
w ill be in effect.
February with the selections
Snow permitting (another m
scheduled for March.
feet), officials say the new
Detailed information about
Hood River Meadows lift w ill applying is provided with the
be in operation. The new lift application blanks which are
offers a vertical of 1400 feet. available at the Salem D istrict
The terrain varies from in Office or any federal office. The
termediate to expert, “ with lots jobs are open to anyone who is
of tree
skiing fo r the either 18 or a high school
powderhounds.”
graduate.
Meadows announces
holiday schedule
Mt. Hood Meadows w ill go on
a holiday schedule starting
Monday, Dec. 19.
Meadows o ffic ia ls have
announced that the ski area w ill
be open from 9 a m. to 10 p.m.
through Jan. 1. The only ex
ceptions w ill be on Christmas
Eve when the area w ill close at
4:30 p.m. and not open until 11
a.m. Christmas Day. Holiday
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Ju st N orth of D ivision
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