Established in Columbus in 1998,  Anti-Theft Program  (ATP) is a five hour educational program for people accused of committing  theft.  Most  of  those  attending  the  program  have  been  charged  with  retail  theft,  better  known  as  “shoplifting”.

 

The typical shoplifter  is  generally  hardworking,  family oriented,  and often religiously involved.  They live their daily lives by  the  values  and laws  of  society.   The individual would never consider  stealing  “from a person”,  but  convince themselves that  “taking from the store is not  like taking  from a person, so no one is really hurt”.

 

ATP strives to help the theft offender understand the following things:

*    the negative impact  shoplifting/theft  has on their  community;  since retail theft increases the cost of merchandise sold in the stores, cause retail businesses to close  which increases unemployment, and impacts on social service programs that rely on sales taxes for funding;

 

*    what  influenced or motivated  the individual  to  step “out of character”  and  risk  stealing;  motivators such as  depression,  anxiety,  medical  issues,  financial distress, peer  pressure,  substance  abuse,  life crisis, or other life challenges;

 

*    based on this understanding, they develop a  personal plan to  avoid committing  future  theft.