Petty crime is (as of a few years ago) basically legal in California. If they get caught they are issued a ticket and sent on their way.

As a result, nuisance thefts are off the charts. Car stereos, bikes, yard tools etc. Leave it outside and it will be gone. My neighborhood (quiet and semi rural) never had problems with it, now it seems like every couple of days I hear of one of my neighbors getting stuff stolen out of their car or yard. Cops can't/won't really do anything about it.

Then again, even more serious burglaries don't garner much of a response. One of my clients had their home broken into while they were home asleep. Theives threw a cinder block through their downstairs window, entered and stole a purse, 2 laptops, a small tv and X-box and 2 ipads.
I provided shockingly clear video footage of the burglars for the detectives. While they were looking at the video and copying it to a thumb drive I asked what the odds were of catching them. Was told that it was "slim to none" unless they were well known criminals. Basically no investigative work would be done and that was that.
And no, they were never caught.