Burglaries hit home -- and it's time to hit back

So many burglars, so little prison time.

It's a sad fact that the criminal justice system simply can't afford to take burglary seriously -- not in terms of prison, anyway. So if burglars get caught, they don't see much time, if any, behind bars.

The National Center for Policy Analysis says that out of every 100 burglaries, only half get reported -- and only about 3 of the 100 result in felony convictions.

That means that 97 percent of burglaries go largely unpunished.

And, of course, not all convicted burglars go to prison: The NCPA says that out of every 100 burglaries, 1.3 percent of the perpetrators ever see a day behind bars. If they do, the median prison time is but 15 months.

Spread over the 100 burglaries, that's about six days per break-in.

When it comes to burglary, crime pays.

"What a rational, risk-neutral criminal would consider," the NCPA says, "is this: Burglary is profitable so long as what is stolen is worth more than six days behind bars."

There's a great disconnect here. While almost 99 percent of burglars never hear the cold metal clanking of a cell door, just ask anyone who's been burglarized: It's a doggone serious crime to them.

Consider: A story about recent arrests in a string of local break-ins was the most e-mailed story on augustachronicle.com last week. People are interested in the story because burglaries, maybe more than any other crime, hit home. Victims don't just lose material things.

"These idiots broke into my house on Thursday," one online poster wrote about the recent burglaries, "and took more than the monetary stuff; they took my safety and security away."

What is that worth?

Richmond County authorities say the arrest of six people about a week ago may be tied to the burglaries of five dozen homes in the area since September. The loot included electronics, guns and jewelry, the value of the latter alone perhaps exceeding $80,000.

The alleged mastermind, Richard Shane Strickland, 23, is charged with multiple counts. Which brings up another important point:

It's time that even low-level multiple offenses be dealt with as separate and equal crimes.

Too often, people who engage in crime sprees, or who rack up multiple violations, only suffer the consequences of one offense, usually after a plea bargain. A good example is the driver who leads police on a high-speed chase across town or across counties. How many stop signs and stoplights and illegal turns and other moving violations do you suppose occur on such outings -- offenses which most law-abiding citizens would pay through the nose for, if only cited for one of them?

How about a law that says perpetrators of crime sprees and other multiple violations must pay a consequence for each and every one ?

Burglars are particularly well qualified for such a distinction. Indeed, does someone who breaks into 60 homes deserve anything less than 60 sentences strung together like a leg chain? Think of all the damage to all those lives, all the trauma of having a predator rummage through your life like that.

It doesn't necessarily have to be prison time, though in the case of 60 homes it should. It can also mean hefty fines, restitution, community service and more -- with requisite amounts of each of those stacked end-to-end for each offense.

Each offense, every traumatized victim, ought to count for something.

Otherwise, the criminal will be acting rationally -- and we will not.