In my last blog entry regarding Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher Mike Leake (stole 6 t-shirts valued at $60 from Macy’s (earns $425K per year), I mentioned a lack of common sense in his decision to shoplift.  While he has not spoken publicly about his misdemeanor shoplifting charge, another celebrity (of sorts), Miss Russia 1998 Ana Malova is blaming drugs for her recent shoplifting.

This past week Malova was arrested for stealing a hat and a pair of sandals from a New York City store.  She has been charged with criminal possession of stolen property and petty larceny.  Her lawyer claims this problem as well as previous problems (arrests) have all been drug-related. He reiterated she is not a criminal.  Not a criminal, does she not do illegal drugs?  Did she not shoplift? 

Hmm drugs and theft, ya think there’s a connection?

Her previous arrest involved both drugs and theft.  Last year she was nailed for stealing prescription pads from her doctor’s office so she could stock up on prescription painkillers. 

Malova has been in and out of rehab since she won her crown in 1998, and despite the assurances of her attorney that she is on the mend I have a hard time believing it.  She has a long history of acting impulsively and showing no common sense.  I certainly think she could benefit from an online theft class.

Professional athletes getting in trouble is nothing new.  For whatever reason, some of these young men seem to think they are above the law.  In the past week two incidents of incredibly poor decision-making took place.  As a counselor for both online theft classes and alcohol awareness classes, one mantra I preach to each student is “show common sense.”  This is of course made more difficult if drugs and alcohol are involved.

The Folly of Youth

You are a second-year, 23-year-old starting pitcher for a major league baseball team. Yes, you may be one of the lowest paid players in the game, but does that mean you have no common sense.

Mike Leake, the player I am writing about is one of the few players to actually graduate from college. Leake graduated and pitched for the Arizona State Sun Devils and was a surprise starter in his rookie season.  How surprising was it – Leake was only the third pitcher since 1970 and the first in more than 15 years to start a game in the majors before starting a game in the minor leagues.

Common sense seemed to be missing for the 23-year-old hurler went he entered a Macy’s department store and decided to leave with six shirts, valued at less than $60, without paying for them. Leake removed the price tags and walked out wit the sic T-shirts.  He was arrested before the team’s game that evening.  Six shirts – for $60 – are you kidding me. Leake was arrested for misdemeanor shoplifting and could spend 6 months in jail. Certainly he will have to attend a shoplifting class.

Again he is one of the lowest paid players in the game, but still his annual salary should have been enough to cover $60.  He will make $425,000.00 this year.  Common, Mike – show some common sense.

Older, but Wiser

Another Major League Baseball pitcher who did not show any common sense this week is Derek Lowe of the Atlanta Braves. Lowe was arrested for DUI after police caught him racing another car down an Atlanta street at 10PM Thursday night.  Are you kidding me – street racing.  Where’s the common sense?

Not only racing, but intoxicated as well.  After refusing to take a breathalyzer test, Lowe failed a field sobriety test and was promptly arrested and booked for reckless driving and driving under the influence. In addition to facing fine and jail time, he'll probably have to take an alcohol awarenes class.

Why did Lowe decide not to take a taxi home?  It couldn’t have been due to the fact he had no pocket change.  Lowe will make $15,000,000 for the Braves this season.

Not that age makes any difference, but one would expect a 37-year-old veteran to behave himself.  Lowe has a history of making headlines. Back in 2005, as a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers, Lowe abandoned his family who still lived back in Boston and moved in with a Fox News TV reporter. He is a man who now has a history of showing little common sense.

Common guys – kids are watching.  Whether you like it or not, you are role models. Use common sense – don’t steal – rich or not, it is never right. And Derek Lowe, holy cow – that was a serious brain fart. Not only was he driving while intoxicated, but he was racing.  Most teenagers have more common sense.

You probably have heard the paying the prostitution is one of the world’s oldest professions. Well when people first started visiting prostitutes, you can bet there was stealing going on around town as well. As a teacher for an online theft course I often like to educate my students in the history of shoplifting. This is the first of a 2-part series that will trace the origins of theft from the earliest manifestations through current times where shoplifting has become the number 1 property crime in America.

Be Careful You Might Get Clubbed In The Head!

Did cavemen steal from one another? That is an interesting question. Among students in my stop theft courses and various colleagues in the industry this question brings up imaginative conversation. An image of Early Man conjures up a simple, primitive lifestyle, where hunter-gatherers banded together to eat and survive. While it may be hard to imagine them stealing from one another, for me, I would find it nearly impossible that they didn’t.

While I believe theft had to be a part of caveman and Neanderthal life, there is no visual proof it happened. Have you ever seen a cave painting involving theft? Me, neither, but that does not mean it didn’t happen.

News From Mount Sinai

Moving forward in time a little, to a period that has solid documentation, let’s take a look at Biblical times. Did people steal then? Of course! The problem was rampant enough that when God sent his list of edicts to live by, otherwise known as the Ten Commandments, theft was specifically mentioned. Theft had the honor of being in God’s “Top 10” do not do list!

I do not think God was being vague when Commandment #5 said, “Thou shalt not steal” (Exodus 20:15 and again in Deuteronomy 5:19). It seems simple enough, and I am certain you do not want people stealing from you.

Thou Hast Stolen My Donkey!!

Did people really steal during Biblical times? If so, what were they stealing? I am not talking about Cain killing his brother Abel over petty jealousies surrounding parental love, or Jacob literally “pulling the wool over” his blind father Isaac in order to secure his family’s birth right, I am talking stealing of goods and merchandise. So what were people thieving?

First of all, the Bible is very clear that if you steal, restitution must be made. For example in Exodus 22:1, “If a man steals an ox or a sheep and kills it or sells it, he must pay back five head of cattle for the ox, and four sheep for the one sheep.” And further in Exodus22:4, “If the stolen item should in fact be found alive in his possession, whether it be an ox or a donkey or a sheep, he must pay back double.”

Biblical Burglars

So it appears they were definitely stealing livestock. Ah, but did people need to lock their houses to avoid being burgled? You bet! Check out Exodus 22:7, “If a man gives his neighbor money or articles for safekeeping, and it is stolen from the man's house, if the thief is caught, he must repay double.”

It certainly would not have been fun if you could not pay the reparations for your theft during these times. Exodus 22:3 says, “A thief must surely make full restitution; if he has nothing, then he will be sold for his theft.” That would certainly make a thief think twice. You get caught and can’t pay, you don’t get a simple fine or a few days in jail, you become someone else’s personal property.

Judas Was A Traitor And A Thief

We all know how Judas Iscariot was one of Jesus’ 12 apostles whose betrayal caused him to be hung from the cross. But did you know that Judas was also a thief? In one of the earliest cases for “corporate greed,” Judas, as the treasurer for the disciples, stole from the money bag they kept to help feed the poor.

So far we have taken a brief look at theft from Early Man through Biblical times. In the following article will move right into the Middle Ages and the Industrial Revolution which will segue into the modern area.

As a counselor for online theft classes, I often ask my students why they think we offer the course.  After getting past the snide barbs about pure, unadulterated punishment, we come down to the meat and potatoes of why we these classes and what we expect out the students who take them.

Theft classes are designed for both people who have engaged in shoplifting behavior as well as for those trying to cope with a shoplifter.  For shoplifters, the primary aim is to reduce the occurrence of individuals committing theft.

Virtually all of my students, more than 95%, are taking the shoplifting course because of a court order.  Whether the courts have mandated you take a theft class or you are just trying to learn more about how to evaluate and access your own behavior as it relates to shoplifting, following are 10 signs you may need to take an online theft class:

1. You have seen someone steal and you did nothing about it. Tolerating an act of crime could be the first step into accepting the thought that it could happen. It doesn’t matter if what was taken is big or small.  The point is, you have tolerated the act, and worse, accepted it.

2. You have friends who shoplift. Do your friends or casual acquintences shoplift?  If you have never shoplift, but hand out with kids who do, the chances of you getting in trouble because of their behavior increases exponentially.  If they get caught, you could be an accessory.  You may even feel the pressure to shoplift yourself. 

3. You have friends who push you to do it. Peer pressure pushing you toward behaviors you know are not right.  A stop theft class will reinforce your belief that shoplifting is wrong and encourage you to distance yourself from peers who steal. Peer pressure is hard to push away. If you can’t handle it alone, you might consider taking a theft class.

4. Your coveting items you cannot afford has progressed into actions, or even thoughts of shoplifting. If you can’t have something, you should learn to accept that you can’t have it. Never consider taking that which is not yours.

5. You have thoughts about stealing. Maybe you’rte just standing in line at the grocery store and start thinking about how easy it would be to steal a pack of gum.  These thoughts become more frequent.  

6. Simple “Innocent” thoughts advance to the planning stage.  It may have started out with the thought of lifting a pack of gum and now you are actually planning it.  Watching the cashier’s, looking for the manager’s station, and planning a getaway.  If this scenario sounds familiar, you need a stop theft class. 

7. You have shoplifted once or twice but think about it often. If you have shoplifted and gotten away with it can embolden you to believe that what you did was somehow justified, and furthermore perhaps you should do it again.  This rationale seriously could use a stop theft class.

8. You have progressed to stealing often. Perhaps you have never been caught and feel virtually invincible.  Odds are, your luck is going to run out.  If you are reading this article, or discussing it as part of a theft class, you were unlucky at least once.  If you can’t learn from others’ mistakes, please, learn from your own.

9. You just can’t help yourself.  This is also known as kleptomania.  In addition to a theft class, if you suffer from this malady you should seek medical help as well.  Less than 15% of all shoplifters suffer from chronic, compulsive theft behavior.  It is treatable.

10.  You start rationalizing that stealing is fine. Once again, there is no way to justify shoplifting behavior.  Really, there are zero legitimate reasons usable to rationalize stealing.  If you have rationalized it even once, you could use a stop theft class.

As a counselor for various courses including alcohol awareness classes and online theft classes, my students often like to engage in discussion regarding celebrities and their problems. For years Hollywood has made films glorifying theft including the likes of The Hustler, The Fast and the Furious, Gone in 60 Seconds, as well as more bank robbery films where the robbers are the good guys than can be named in one short article.

Despite starring in iconoclastic films, or perhaps more because they have plenty of discretionary income, few Hollywood stars get arrested for shoplifting and other petty larceny offenses. With her recent arrest for shoplifting, Lindsay Lohan may have become the most famous Hollywood star arrested for shoplifting, and unlike many others, she is being prosecuted.

Winona Caught In The Act

Before Lohan, Winona Ryder was undoubtedly the queen of Hollywood shoplifting lore. Ryder could not escape the charges either as her theft was caught on camera by store surveillance cameras. These videos have become quite popular on the Internet. Ryder was caught stealing more than $5000 worth of goods from a department store in Beverly Hills back in 2001. Ryder did not get off with a slap on the wrist. It cost her more than $10,000 in fines and restitution, 480 hours of community service and was placed on three years probation.

Stars Do Steal

Theft by celebrities goes all the way back to the 1940s when Bess Myerson stole almost $45 worth of cosmetics and sundries from a small department store in Pennsylvania. Some of you may remember the beautiful Miss Myerson as the first Jewish Miss America (crowned in 1945).

If Myerson is too old for you how about film critic Rex Reed? In addition to his expertise critiquing films, Reed also is a major music aficionado, with thousands of albums in his home. Reid was busted for trying to shoplift 3 compact discs that he had placed in his pocket (if you are interested they were albums by Mel Torme, Carmen McRae and Peggy Lee). After claiming he "forgot" he had put them in his pocket all charges were dropped by Tower Records.

Lohan May Be Out Of Control

All of this brings us back to the current Hollywood diva facing trial for shoplifting. Judging from other charges in her past, it would seem fair to say that she certainly could use an alcohol awareness class. For those of you who have spent the last five years in a cave, on a deserted island or the moon, Lohan was arrested for driving under the influence in 2007 and has had numerous run ins for the law for issues ranging from drug and alcohol abuse to the latest incident of stealing a diamond-encrusted necklace from a Sak's Fifth Avenue department store. With the value of the necklace at more than $4K, Lohan is facing a felony charge of grand theft.

Why Do They Steal and Do They Need Help?

Nobody knows for certain why Lindsay Lohan and other celebrities steal and shoplift. I believe there are a number of issues involved. And, yes, I do think Lindsay Lohan could benefit from taking a shoplifting class or theft class.

One theory as to why celebrities steal involves the risk they lead in their careers and personal lives. Lohan for sure is known to lead a risky lifestyle. Back in 2007 when she was arrested for DUI, she led police on a minor chase through Los Angeles before pulling over. In addition to being intoxicated from alcohol, police found cocaine in her vehicle as well.

Another possible motivation is they think they are invincible. Many celebrities let their fame go to their heads. They are used to restaurants, stores and other merchandiser offering them free goods. All the free items foment the idea that they are special, they are pampered, and they are constantly showered with gifts. Therefore, stealing is not taking something that doesn't belong to them, it is something they mentally justify as their right as celebrities.

The fact is celebrities are human beings just like the rest of us. It is estimated that for every time a person is caught shoplifting they have gotten away with it more than 50 times. Lohan probably has stolen many other things in the past. She may have even have been caught, only to be let go because of her celebrity. A stop theft class would not only help her understand and access the motivations behind her shoplifting behavior, but provide ways to mentally focus herself so that she does not steal again.