VISALIA, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – Visalia police are touting their retail theft arrest record during the holiday season; they arrested 102 people and recovered about $35,000 in stolen goods.  Police Chief Jason Salazar says it is all part of their annual Holiday Madness Operation.  He says the department deploys an increased number of officers every year during November and December, but in 2024, they chose to focus on addressing retail theft.  “Not only does it affect the businesses, but I think it affects the community’s sense of safety,” Salazar said.  Despite a rise in online shopping, he says retail theft is still a prevalent issue.  “It's been a huge problem, one that we've really been trying to be aggressive in addressing. And this year we really ramped it up,” Salazar said.  Catching the criminals is not enough, though; he also wants to deter people from committing the crime in the first place. He believes the newly enacted Prop 36 will help with that.  “Prop 36 is a great tool that the voters passed. I think the voters made a statement that they were also tired of drug and theft activity that's occurring in our communities and they want it to be safer. And we fully intend to use that law to our advantage,” Salazar said.  Because of Prop 36, thefts under $950 can be considered felonies if the defendant has two prior theft convictions. Salazar says the majority of those they arrest for retail theft are repeat offenders.  Prop 36 went into effect in mid-December, but in a recent interview, Tulare County District Attorney Tim Ward told Yourcentralvalley.com they have already charged at least 13 people with felony theft who would have previously faced a misdemeanor charge.  “The gig is up. I don't mean to be flippant about it, but the reality is, you know, we have filed felony charges on people that would otherwise have just been cited and released on a misdemeanor petty theft,” Ward said.  Although the Holiday Madness Operation is over, Salazar says the department will continue working to prevent retail theft throughout the year.  He sees Prop 36 as a helpful tool in that effort.