Stop thieves

San Francisco has a glittering view no one likes: broken glass along street curbs from auto break-ins that have exploded in number in recent years. Changing the law could help prosecutors nail car burglars behind the festering crime.

The proposed measure sounds surprisingly simple. To prove a break-in, a prosecutor wouldn’t need to show that the door locks were engaged, a requirement now on the books. Many victims are out-oftowners or tourists, making a court appearance and testimony hard to obtain. Without that assurance, a break-in case can fall apart even though there’s evidence that a window was smashed and valuables stolen.

It’s an odd loophole that needs fixing. Last year state Sen. Scott Wiener, a Democrat from break-in central San Francisco, pushed a fix-it bill that died. He’s proposing a similar measure this week backed by District Attorney George Gascón, Police Chief Bill Scott and Supervisor Vallie Brown. Under the change, a broken window would count as evidence of break-in.

Getting the cases into court is crucial. That’s because the burglaries are often staged by crews responsible for large numbers of the crimes, Gascón said. If the cases can’t be effectively tried due to a faulty law, then the wave of broken glass will continue.

Last year, there were 31,000 reports of vehicle burglaries stretched across residential areas, tourist haunts and side streets in parks, the highest total ever for the violation. The plan to amend the break-in law was announced at Alamo Square, home to the Painted Ladies Victorians and 358 smash-and-grab car burglaries last year.

Police report that breakins are down by 14 percent from last year. If the law can be changed, it will be up to the courts to further that trend. The city is waiting.