... 2. the removal of sentences that are not deterrent enough;...
I think California wanted to heed your advice, but something must have gotten lost in translation: they removed prosecution as the deterrent - if someone steels items worth less than $950 from you, don’t bother calling the police, prosecutors will automatically drop the charge. People are calmly walking into a store, picking a tv, microwave, etc., and equally calmly walking out without paying.