CASA helps kleptomaniacs

Terry Shulman has gone seven years without shoplifting, but he still avoids stores when he can.

"I consider myself a recovering shoplifter," he said.

Shulman founded the Ann Arbor branch of Cleptomaniacs and Shoplifters Anonymous in 1995, a support group that helps shoplifters and kleptomaniacs recover from their habit. He founded a similar group in Southfield in 1992.

A typical meeting has between two and 11 people in attendance, some voluntary, some court-ordered. Attendance is sporadic, Shulman said.

"We don't get a lot of students here. Many students don't feel they have a problem (even if they do)," Shulman said.

KEVIN KRUPITZER/Daily A member of the support group Cleptomaniacs and Shoplifters Anonymous attends one of the group's semi-weekly meetings at the First Baptist Church.

CASA is one of a handful of groups across the nation that is addressing the underlying causes and motivations for compulsive stealing.

Shulman said that shoplifters, and the reasons for their behavior, are generally misunderstood.

"The public perception is that shoplifters are thieves. Nine out of 10 are really caring people," he said.

In most cases, Shulman said, shoplifters do not steal out of financial necessity, but to satisfy an emotional need.

Brenda, an area resident in her 30s, was put on probation and court-ordered to attend CASA after she was arrested for shoplifting.

"I know that I don't have to (shoplift), but I do it anyway," she said.

In many cases, shoplifters are "people who are not assertive, and can't ask for help," so they turn to shoplifting as a way of escape, Shulman said.

In other cases, Shulman described shoplifters as "people who are caretakers, who are spending time with other people, but neglecting themselves," and they feel they need to do something self-gratifying.

Eric, an Engineering sophomore, attributed his shoplifting problem to feelings like this. Eric was arrested for theft last year, put on probation and was court-ordered to attend a support group such as CASA.

He described the desire to shoplift as "feeling like you're doing something for someone else, and feeling that you deserve something. I felt like I needed something."

Shoplifters often are embarassed to admit that they have a problem. Eric described "being too proud of a person to ask someone for help."

Expressing anger through shoplifting is what happened in Shulman's case. He was arrested and put on probation for shoplifting in 1986 while an undergraduate at the University.

"I had some anger," he said, and shoplifting was a way to act out.

What Shulman didn't realize was that his behavior was becoming habitual.

"I just felt it was a bad phase I was going through. After probation, I got cocky again," he said.

Shulman said this kind of behavior can become compulsive.

"I don't think people realize that shoplifting can develop into a habit or an addiction," he said.

College students in particular are susceptible to picking up dangerous habits when they are experimenting with new activities, Shulman said.

"There's a relatively normal stage of experimentation with right and wrong," he said. "But before you know it, you can use this kind of behavior to cope with life."

Once stealing becomes an addiction, the recovery process involves more than just bringing an end to the activity.

"Not only are they going to have to stop the behavior itself, but they're going to have to work on other relationships," Shulman said.

Compulsive stealing can cause many problems in addition to legal issues, such as problems with relationships, lower grades and feelings of shame and paranoia, Shulman said.

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