Mocking street signs California’s issue with retail thievery goes viral

A parody street sign that made fun of California’s retail theft legislation was not official and has since disappeared from San Francisco.

The Louis Vuitton store in downtown San Francisco was the first location of the sign when it originally debuted late last month. “NOTICE: Stolen goods must remain under $950,” it stated.

Voters in California enacted Proposition 47 in 2014, which limited prosecution of retail theft to misdemeanors under $950. The Golden State has seen an increase in smash-and-grab and flash mob-style robberies in recent years, according to critics of the law.

Voters will decide in November on a ballot initiative that would partially undo the provisions of Prop 47.

Despite the sign’s compelling official appearance, a representative for the San Francisco Department of Public Works told KRON4 that it was not put up by the city. It was gone when a city employee was dispatched to investigate it on Sunday.

Gizmodo discovered that the sign was authentic, despite some people’s theories that it was Photoshopped or AI-generated.

Gizmodo clarified, “The sign was captured from multiple angles.”

The adjoining Dior store, which was the target of a smash-and-grab last autumn in which about $150,000 worth of merchandise was taken, was also shown in another picture with the same warning outside.