RILA–NDAA Vibrant Communities Initiative

RILA Member-Only Resources NDAA Member-Only Resources

Combatting Retail Crime for Safer Communities

The National District Attorneys Association (NDAA) and Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) have formed a first-of-its-kind national partnership to combat retail crime. The launch of the national partnership follows a successful summit held on June 30, 2022, bringing together leading retailers and district attorneys’ offices from around the country to establish open lines of communication between prosecutors and retailers, identify common challenges, share information on repeat offenders, and work together to identify criminal networks targeting local retailers.

Store Walk Initiative

RILA, NDAA Drive Local Collaboration to Combat Retail Crime

RILA and the National District Attorneys Association (NDAA) Store Walk Initiative connects retailers with local prosecutors to take a unique approach to tackling organized retail crime, habitual theft, and their impact on communities.

Store Walk Initiative

Retail Crime Advisory Board

Ashlie Shanley

(Chair) District Attorney | Prosecutorial District 25 (NC)

Eric Zahnd

Prosecuting Attorney | Platte County Prosecuting Attorney's Office

Kimberly Esack

Supervisor, Economic Crimes Division | Philadelphia District Attorney's Office

Bradley Schoenleben

Senior Deputy District Attorney | Orange County District Attorney's Office

Joseph Dallaire

District Attorney | Fairbanks District Attorney's Office

Shane Bennett

Principal-Theft, Fraud & Abuse | Target

Jeff Blunk

Senior Manager Investigations, Asset Protection | Nordstorm, Inc.

Melissa Wacha

Director, Asset Protection Operations and Investigations | Meijer, Inc.

Rory Stallard

Director of Loss Prevention (ORC) | Ulta Beauty, Inc.

Trish Curran

Director of National Investigations | The Home Depot, Inc.

Kelly Hansen

Director, Organized Retail Crime | Macy's, Inc

About Us

Discover more on the Vibrant Communities Initiative

RILA & NDAA partnered to launch the Initiative to bring together district attorneys, police departments, social service organizations & other stakeholders to identify effective approaches for addressing organized retail crime, habitual theft, violence, vagrancy & blight in & around retail stores.

About the Initiative

Partnership Sponsors

RILA & NDAA are grateful to our sponsors for their support of Combatting Retail Crime for Safe Communities, a first-of-its-kind national partnership of leading retailers and district attorneys.

Take it from our Members

From the cohort meetings, I have learned about business models, fiscal calendars, in-store camera considerations, legal requirements from their corporate lawyers, current plagues, regional differences, and a lot of information that does make me a better prosecutor and a better representative in court of my retail partners. I still have so much more to learn from these folks!

Anna Winn

Deputy District Attorney - Regional Fraud Task Force

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Retail Asset Protection Conference

Retail security and asset protection leaders connect at RAP to address organized retail crime, workplace safety, and loss prevention strategies.

2026 Retail Crime Conference

Annual conference equips local prosecutors, law enforcement, and retailers with the tools to identify patterns, dismantle criminal networks, and build strong cases that hold offenders accountable.

National District Attorney Association Annual Summit

The NDAA Summer Summit offers educational, information-sharing, and networking tools to ensure prosecutors and those working in the field are plugged into the most innovative ideas and practical strategies for addressing crime.

Featured News

"National Store Walk Month represents our next leap forward in establishing comprehensive retail crime mitigation strategies and fostering community well-being," said Lisa LaBruno, RILA's Senior Executive Vice President. "This initiative will bridge the gap between retailers and prosecutors, helping us collectively address the complex challenges our communities face."

RILA, NDAA Launch National Store Walk Month

“There is no easy solution to tackle theft and violence; we’re facing a complex, multi-faceted challenge and it’s going to take commitments from a diverse group of stakeholders to better understand the root causes in various communities and implement solutions that acknowledge and address those larger issues,” remarked NDAA Executive Director Nelson Bunn.

RILA and NDAA Collaborate on Vibrant Communities Initiative

As prosecutors, we must protect the safety of retail employees and customers by holding the individuals who commit thefts, violence and other retail-related offenses accountable for their crimes. I look forward to continued discussions with the RILA on how to uncover the criminals who profit from stolen merchandise, prevent thefts and enhance public safety for all who shop and work at our nation’s retailers,” said Erie County District Attorney John J. Flynn, President of NDAA.

Prosecutors, Retailers Partner to Combat Retail Crime

Get Informed About the New INFORM Consumers Act

The INFORM Consumers Act requires online marketplaces to implement major new initiatives to verify their third-party sellers and imposes significant liability for failing to take appropriate action against bad actors. The Federal Trade Commission and state enforcers are charged with enforcing the Act. Read RILA’s analysis of the INFORM Act as well as a short “cheat sheet” outline of the provisions.

ORC-Task-Forces-–-2023-11-1

Vibrant Communities FAQ

Does Vibrant Communities focus on juvenile offenders?

Yes. An effective tool for preventing juvenile offenders from entering the criminal justice system as adults is early intervention. Vibrant Communities will test model programs directed at juvenile offenders, particularly those at highest risk of re-offending. Also, the initiative will leverage local schools to educate youth about the risks associated with committing retail crime and support services available to them.

How were the pilot communities selected?

District attorneys from across the country were invited to nominate their jurisdiction for a pilot community. The criteria for selecting pilot communities included:

density among RILA members, common designation among RILA members as high-risk area;
engaged District Attorney, integrated community and social services, reasonable expectation that an impact can be measured in one year;
supportive police chief and properly resourced police department, aligned statutory environment;
supportive mayor/city manager/local government and active Local business organization(s).

Based on these criteria and responses to follow-up questions, RILA and NDAA recommended to the APLC that Yolo County and King County serve as pilot communities. The APLC agreed with the recommendation.

How will success of the pilot be measured?

Participating retailers are uniquely positioned to measure the impact on criminal activity in their stores in the pilot communities (e.g. recidivism rate by HIOs in pilot stores, frequency of other unlawful activity; theft-related losses). Additionally, a qualified researcher will be retained to identify key metrics, collect data related to those metrics and measure associated impacts.

How will Vibrant Communities seek to address recidivism among HIOs?

The risk that a HIO will re-offend depends on various factors, including the nature of the criminal offense(s), the individual’s criminal history and personal circumstances (e.g. drug addicted, mental illness, unhoused, lacks job training, etc.). There is no “one size fits all” solution for mitigating recidivism across all HIOs. Rather, solutions must be tailored to the offenders’ situation and desire to rehabilitate.

For example, key stakeholders will collaborate to investigate and shut down local fences that recruit and employ habitual theft offenders. While diversion may be an appropriate resolution for the shoplifter/booster, the fence may face stiffer penalties - including incarceration – in an effort to deter future criminal conduct by that fence as well as others engaging in similar criminal activity.

Is there a cost to participate in the pilots in King County and Yolo County?

All retailers with stores in or near pilot communities are encouraged to participate in the pilots, including designating a local AP leader to the Pilot Working Group. While there are expectations of companies participating in these pilots (see above), there is no financial commitment required.

Is there a cost to retailers to participate in Vibrant Communities?

There are two levels of participation available to retailers:

Executive Committee member (top decision-making body for the overall Vibrant Communities initiative, guiding strategy, focus, pace, etc.); and
Steering Committee member (provides input on initiative priorities and actions) Participation at the Executive Committee and Steering Committee levels will require an investment from retailers (and other stakeholders who participate).

Participation at the Executive Committee and Steering Committee levels will require an investment from retailers (and other stakeholders who participate).

My company doesn’t operate stores in Yolo County or King County. What does that mean for our company’s participation in the vibrant communities initiative?

The pilot is one piece of the Vibrant Communities initiative and will inform actions taken elsewhere. Some of those actions can start now with retailers sharing effective practices with the RILA/NDAA network. As the pilots progress, key learnings will be shared with the broader RILA membership as well as with NDAA members to replicate in communities across the country. Also, retailers are encouraged to actively participate in the parallel activities led by RILA and NDAA.

What are the desired outcomes of the pilot and the broader Vibrant Communities initiative?

Vibrant Communities seeks to achieve 3 primary outcomes, specifically to reduce (1) recidivism among High Impact Habitual Offenders; (2) crime and other unlawful activity in/around retail stores; and (3)financial loss to retailers.

What do you say to critics who think Vibrant Communities is soft on crime? Or the critics who think Vibrant Communities is really about locking-up more people?

In some cases, like crimes of violence against retailer workers, or sophisticated criminal enterprises causing large-scale financial losses, incarceration is the only way to prevent a HIO from re-offending and to deter others from committing similar crimes. Vibrant communities will pursue prosecution of the worst offenders.

There are also HIOs whose propensity to engage in unlawful activity is fueled by underlying issues (e.g. drug addiction, mental illness, homelessness) and who, if provided targeted support services, can rehabilitate and live productive crime-free lives.

Vibrant Communities takes a rational, balanced and individualized approach to addressing recidivism among HIOs.

What is a High-Impact Habitual Offender?

A High-Impact Habitual Offender (HIO) is an individual who causes significant financial loss to a retailer through criminal activity, persistently engages in unlawful activity in/around retail establishments, and/or poses a safety risk to employees and customers.

Examples of an HIO include a booster in an organized retail crime ring, a habitual shoplifter acting alone for profit (i.e. assumes dual role of shoplifter and fence), a fence that recruits and employs habitual offenders, an actor who has used or repeatedly threatened the use of violence against employees, or an individual who self-administers narcotics in a store or sets-up shelter in a store’s parking lot.

What is expected of retailers who participate in the pilot?

To ensure a successful pilot, participating retailers must commit to actively engaging with local stakeholders and executing on identified strategies. Participating retailers must operate stores within pilot (or adjoining) communities, be willing and able to share case data in a protected manner, designate a local AP team member to the pilot working group, be open to testing combinations of technology, and actively participate in cases post-arrest.

What is the goal of Vibrant Communities?

The goal is to return vibrancy to shopping districts that have been plagued by unprecedented increases in crime.

What is the Vibrant Communities Initiative?

RILA’s Vibrant Communities Initiative arises out of an urgent need to address rising organized retail crime, habitual theft, violence, vagrancy and blight in and around retail stores. Communities across America are plagued with underlying social challenges – drug addiction, mental illness, homelessness – that are exacerbating a retail crime problem that has persisted for years. Addressing these complex criminal and social problems requires commitment from a diverse group of stakeholders.

To that end, RILA and the National District Attorneys Association (NDAA) partnered to launch a pilot in 2 communities that brings together district attorneys, police departments, social service organizations, local policy makers, civic and business groups and other stakeholders to identify effective approaches for dealing with High-Impact Habitual Offenders.

What methods will be used to achieve the desired outcomes?

The pilot will test efficiency of information sharing among retailers and with law enforcement to identify HIOs; develop leading practices for ensuring successful prosecution of the worst offenders; divert qualified offenders to targeted social service programs to break the cycle of criminal conduct; promote active and consistent participation by retailers in criminal prosecutions through case conclusion; and test combinations of technologies to promote an effective integrated crime mitigation strategy.

What role do solution providers play in Vibrant Communities?

Vibrant Communities will test combinations of integrated retail crime mitigation technologies. Findings will be shared with participating retailers for consideration.

When is the pilot expected to launch?

Summer, 2023.

Where are the two pilot communities?

Parallel pilots will be launched in Yolo County, California and King County, Washington.

Why is RILA partnering with the National District Attorney Association to lead this effort?

Local district attorneys are essential partners in restoring law and order, safety and vibrance to local communities. Prosecutors have broad discretion in determining the disposition of criminal charges – e.g. revoke bail, cite & release, dismiss/downgrade criminal charges, seek incarceration, offer a diversion program, etc. How a case is resolved can impact the likelihood that the criminal actor will reoffend.

Partnering with the NDAA – the leading association of local prosecutors across the country – enhances collaboration between retailers and the very prosecutors assigned to handle retail crime cases.