AUSTIN, Texas — In Austin, a growing number of retailers say they’re seeing more theft, and as a result, they’re dishing out more money paying for private security, saying they don’t feel there are meaningful consequences for low-level crimes.
Data from the Travis County Criminal Data Dashboard shows misdemeanor theft filings increased by 17% in the first half of 2025 compared to the same period last year.
That includes theft cases where the value of stolen goods is under $2,500, incidents that typically involve shoplifting or small-scale property crime…