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OREGON CITY, Or. -- Clackamas County District Attorney John Wentworth has issued the following statement regarding retail theft prosecutions by his office: 
Clackamas County law enforcement agencies periodically conduct retail theft missions targeting shoplifters who steal from local businesses.
These crimes affect all of us. As District Attorney, my office vigorously prosecutes the retail theft cases referred to us.
In December 2024, the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office, in partnership with local police departments, arrested 30 people for theft during a two-day investigation.
It takes time for criminal cases to work their way through the judicial process. I want you to know the outcome of these 30 cases as of April 21.
- Convictions: 11
- Cases pending or awaiting charges: 8
- Defendants failed to appear in court: 4
- Cases dismissed: 2
- Five juveniles were contacted and referred to the Juvenile Department for appropriate intervention.
In addition, one person was arrested on an outstanding warrant for theft and pleaded guilty to the charge.
The adult arrestees were charged with Theft in the Second Degree (value of items taken was $100 or more but less that $1,000) or Theft in the Third Degree (value of items taken was less than $100.)
Theft in the Second Degree is a Class A misdemeanor with a penalty of up to 364 days in jail and a $6,250 fine. Theft in the Third Degree is a Class C misdemeanor with a penalty of up to 30 days in jail and a $1,250 fine.
Some of these offenders were charged with drug possession, robbery or other offenses. Some had pending cases or were wanted on warrants in other Oregon counties. Many have extensive criminal histories, and some have numerous prior arrests for theft.
Here are a few of the defendants arrested in December:
- Peter Riley Lent, 26, pleaded guilty to Theft in the Second Degree. Lent was on probation at the time of his arrest. He was sentenced to 12 months’ bench probation. He also had open cases for robbery and theft in Washington and Multnomah counties. He pleaded guilty in those cases and is now in prison.
- Ronald Lee Nida, 64, pleaded guilty to Theft in the Second Degree and Possession of Methamphetamine. He was sentenced to 18 months of probation and two days in jail.
- Jill Renee Lohr, 42, cited for Theft in the Second Degree. She failed to appear for her court hearing on January 13. Lohr has multiple warrants out of Multnomah County for possession of stolen vehicles, DUII, reckless driving and other charges.
The Clackamas County District Attorney’s Office acknowledges the work of the many law enforcement agencies that participated in the December retail theft mission: the Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office, Canby Police Department, Milwaukie Police Department, Molalla Police Department, Oregon City Police Department, Portland Police Bureau, West Linn Police Department and the Oregon Department of Justice.
The retail theft mission was funded in part by the Organized Retail Theft (ORT) Grant Program, created by Oregon Senate Bill 900 (2023) and administered by the Oregon Criminal Justice Commission. The Clackamas County Sheriff's Office was awarded $686,000 for FY2024-25, which helps fund staffing and equipment for law enforcement missions and other efforts to combat organized retail theft and hold those offenders accountable.
I will continue to update you on how my office deals with cases arising from these on-going retail theft missions.
