I lived in SF for 15 years. The worst area was near the tenderloin. The strangest day was street sweeping day. All the cars would be moved by 7am so you had a clear view down bush street. You could look down bush street and see 3-4 piles of glass on the ground from the previous night. Without street sweeping you would see just a few people crying by their hole in the window.

Smash and grabs are truly the perfect crime in SF. The odds of finding a laptop in the trunk are quite high due to the techies. I, like most residents, cannot hear a car alarm anymore - at this point they help me sleep. It is impossible to get caught - even if you were - the odds of the DA prosecuting you are low. In someways I agree: what is the point of processing a person with a misdemeanor and letting them out in 2 hours without followup.

Ironically, without smash and grabs things would be much worse. I would fear criminals would start hitting apartments. My apartment neighbor was violently assaulted and had her apartment ransacked (for a LAPTOP!). Every office I worked in SF was robbed at least once - no one was ever caught despite clear video. Thankfully, the DA does care about home invasions [I had detective interviews]. So my unpopular opinion is: if they are going to let the city decay into a crime ridden dystopia - leave smash and grabs alone. Let them break into cars. Insurance will cover the window - you can buy a new macbook pro. The next step of home invasions is much more terrifying. AND! With each smash and grab the victim will start voting correctly.