A recently viral video shows the moments that two shoplifters discuss Proposition 36, one of the new laws in effect in California that now makes stealing a felony, while sitting in the back of a police car. 

The video, which was shared on Sunday by the Seal Beach Police Department, follows along with a trio of shoplifting suspects as they hit multiple stores back on Dec. 4, making off which more than $1,600 in stolen merchandise. 

The suspects first enter an Ulta Beauty store at around 7:12 p.m., where police say they took off with almost $650 worth of stolen merchandise. Less than an hour later, they enter a Kohl’s store, where they reportedly stole more than $1,180 worth of items. They can then be seen as they leave the store, walking through the parking lot with stolen items in tow.

Suddenly, the video cuts to body camera footage of police chasing the suspects through a parking lot before they’re arrested, according to a statement released on Monday. 

The suspects have been identified as Destiny Bender, 24, and Deanna Hines, 24, of Long Beach and 26-year-old Signal Hill woman Michelle Pitts. All three were booked on charges of grand theft, conspiracy to commit a crime and resisting arrest. 

Video shows two of those suspects sitting handcuffed in the back of a patrol car.

“It’s a felony?” one can be heard asking. 

“B—h new laws,” the other responds. “Stealing is a felony. And this is Orange County b—h they don’t play.”

Seal Beach police offered an explanation of the new changes in effect across California.

“Proposition 36, which voters approved in November 2024, creates stricter penalties for organized theft and expands law enforcement capabilities to combat repeat offenders,” the Seal Beach police statement says. “Specifically, it permits felony charges for petty theft with prior convictions, allows aggregating the value of stolen goods from multiple thefts to meet the $950 felony threshold, and introduces enhancements for theft crimes involving two or more offenders acting in concert.”

The video was set to the tune of “These Boots Are Made For Walkin’” by Nancy Sinatra, likely alluding to the large furry boots worn by one of the suspects. 

Police say that the release of the video is a part of their “Don’t Steal in Seal” campaign, which highlights arrests and looks to educate the public on the consequences of committing crimes in their city. 

“The campaign has received widespread praise for this innovative approach and effectiveness in engaging the community,” the department release said. 

Words of caution circulated online after a portion of the Santa Cruz Wharf in California broke off and drifted into the surrounding waters on Dec. 23.

Two people with minor injuries were rescued and transported to a local hospital, and a third made their way to safety on their own after the partial collapse happened at 12:45 p.m. PT, according to Santa Cruz officials. No deaths were reported.

A bystander-captured video and shared on X of a large part of the wharf, which is similar to a pier but often smaller, and its debris drifting in the water on the same day. The video owner is credited as Harrison Patiño. A second video, viewed by TODAY.com, shows a small, house-like wooden structure floating in the ocean following the partial collapse.

The 2,745-foot-long wharf has long been a local landmark and tourist attraction and was constructed in 1914, according to the City of Santa Cruz website. It is the sixth wharf to have existed at the site just off of Beach Street.

On X, the press office for Gavin Newsom, the governor of California, cautioned residents and visitors to avoid the area and follow local guidance.

“Newsom has been briefed on a previously damaged section of the Santa Cruz pier that broke off due to heavy surf,” the post reads in part. “(California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services) is coordinating with local officials and is ready to provide support.”

In a press conference later in the day, Santa Cruz officials confirmed that authorities had braced for potential damage to the wharf ahead of time due to strong storms and swell.

“We also would tell people that we want them to stay away,” Rob Oatey of the Santa Cruz Fire Department said. “We pointed out before, the ocean right now is extremely dangerous, so we’re telling all people to stay away, to observe from a safe distance. It’s the holidays, and we have people visiting from out of the area. Observe from a very safe distance. And if they can observe online.”

The official cautioned that debris from the wharf will continue to spread in the ocean and that storms would continue to affect the area for the next four or five days.

The Santa Cruz Wharf has now been closed to the public.

It is now illegal to possess or transport golden mussels in California.

The California Fish and Game Commission has designated the golden mussel a restricted species, the latest salvo in the battle to keep the invasive species out of the state’s waterways. The mussels are considered an immediate threat to the ecological health of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, and California waterways.

The emergency restrictions enacted at the commission’s Dec. 11–12 meetings in Sacramento add the mussel to the list of species restricted from live importation, transportation and possession.

“Putting golden mussels on the restricted species list is an important first step toward containment and prevention of spread of this non-native species,” said Jay Rowan, Chief of the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Fisheries Branch.

Authorities say golden mussels are a bigger threat to California waters than other mussel species because they can thrive in a wider range of water quality conditions.

State and local agencies have been on high alert for the golden mussel since it was first spotted in mid-October in the Port of Stockton.

The Oct. 17 discovery was the first in North America, say California Department of Fish and Wildlife officials.

The mussels, native to China and Southeast Asia, likely found their way to California waters by large ships.

The emergency listing will reduce the potential for people to introduce the bivalves to other waters of the state, say fish and wildlife officials.

The mussels easily make their way into live wells, bilges and ballast tanks, watercraft’s engine systems, plumbing and other compartments onboard boats. The mussels can survive for extended periods of time in the water that collects in the craft’s systems

Since the Stockton discovery, local agencies, including Solano County, have imposed travel restrictions and quarantines on watercraft sailing from the Delta.

In November, Solano County barred watercraft traveling from the Delta from launching in Lake Berryessa without a 30-day quarantine or decontamination.

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