This article doesn’t support your statement. It says “ Nearly a third of all shoplifting arrests in New York City last year involved just 327 people, the police said. Collectively, they were arrested and rearrested more than 6,000 times, Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell said.”

This data suggests they are working and the legal system is letting people go. Are you sure your mental model and generalizations of the police are based on accurate data overall